


The Heat Within His Skin

by mkaro (mkaroliina)



Series: In The Deepest Of My Heart [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alpha Lance (Voltron), Alpha Shiro (Voltron), Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, BAMF Keith (Voltron), Beta Hunk (Voltron), Beta Pidge | Katie Holt, Fluff and Angst, Galaxy Garrison, Jealous Keith (Voltron), Jealous Lance (Voltron), Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Lance (Voltron), Omega Keith (Voltron), Omega Verse, Pining Keith (Voltron), True Mates, flirty keith, he is infuriatingly oblivious, keith and shiro are pseudo brothers, keith is so confused, kind of, like super pining, self indulgence at its peak, you know the drill by now
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2019-02-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 21:43:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14724114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mkaroliina/pseuds/mkaro
Summary: Being an omega was cool, Keith supposed, and he would never let anyone tell him otherwise. Not that he was particularly into flaunting his secondary sex, but he wasn’t that keen on keeping it as this huge ass secret either. It was just people assuming things and Keith letting them believe whatever they wanted. So Keith thinks it’s pretty fair when he says that it is not his fault that the whole school erupted into chaos when he presented that warm summer day in June in front of like every student that stayed on campus for the summer. All he wanted was for everything to go back to normal, but then right when school was set to start again and he could feel the annoying—yet slightly pleasant—buzz of preheat under his skin, Lance McClain walked back into his life, and he was about to ruin everything.ORThe two times Lance accidentally forced Keith into heatOR'The Hunger Never Ends' but from Keith’s perspective





	1. True Mates

**Author's Note:**

> I just finished writing this baby like three seconds ago and remember it's only part one of I don't know how many chapters tbh. I feel like this au is slipping out of my controll and keeps growing and characters I made up randomly are suddenly my favorite characters to write and I don't know what's happening, is this what writing is supposed to be like???
> 
> Man idk I'm just here for the ride I guess.  
> And Ms. Arreola is the motherfigure Keith deserves. Pls love her.

Keith is not your usual omega. Not that he really cares about what an ‘usual’ omega is supposed to be like either way, each for their own and all that, but if you’re looking for a _traditional_ omega, then you’ve come to the wrong place.

First of all, before presenting everyone thought Keith would be an alpha, even though that was clearly out of question if you were to ask Keith’s doctor. Keith has always been intersex, with a womb and all that good stuff, so his secondary sex has always been pretty set in stone his whole life, as it is for any other intersex omega (though not all people with the so called ‘male omega’ sex are male obviously). The only thing missing was just officially presenting as an omega and letting the rest of the world in on the big secret. Keith didn’t care that much for his secondary sex. Being an omega was cool, he supposed, and he would never let anyone tell him otherwise. Not that he was particularly into flaunting his sex, like so many intersex omegas tend to do since they and intersex alphas (commonly known as ‘female alphas’, though the same goes for them that not every intersex alpha is a female) are the only secondary sexes that gets a clue before actually presenting around the age of 15/16. But he wasn’t that keen on keeping it as this huge ass secret either. It was just people assuming things and Keith letting them believe whatever they wanted. So Keith thinks it’s pretty fair when he says that it is not his fault that the whole school erupted into chaos when he finally presented that warm summer day in June in front of like every student that stayed on campus for the summer.

It wasn’t that big of a deal, Keith thought himself. Well, he’d been pretty prepared for this day ever since he was a kid so maybe it wasn’t a huge deal to him, but for the rest of the school it apparently was. The only thing Keith could think of kind of regretting about the day was not catching onto what was happening sooner, though it’s fairly common for people that are presenting not to really understand that they in fact are presenting. It can get a bit confusing and disorienting. And Keith totally understands what they mean now, because the whole day he just wanted to complain about how hot it was, but _everyone_ was complaining about the heat, Jesus Christ they were locked up in a facility placed in a desert in the middle of the summer. Of course it was hot. And it’s not like it’s a new thing for him to have people wandering after him and showing off in front of him. He was, after all, the star cadet, and apparently it was ‘hot’ that he was so unavailable and mysterious. Even though that wasn’t really what he was going for he let it slide. Anyway, so of course he didn’t really think about it when people started trying to get closer to him when he stood in line to get dinner, or when an alpha a few years above him suddenly… sniffed him? Okay, so maybe that one was a little bit weird, and should have probably been the biggest clue as to what was about to happen, but Keith was not about to fight this huge fucking alpha in the middle of the cafeteria when he was all sweaty and tired. The alpha had only, like, scented him a little, it was _fine_. And if that made Keith’s knees a little wobbly after then he thought it was an even better reason to keep his mouth shut about the whole thing.

Long story short, he presented in the middle of the cafeteria to everyone’s surprise, and then he was moved to an isolation room to work it all out (and so the rest of the alpha population of the school could cool their jets, god damn). For the rest of the summer he tried to just mind his own business, but after a couple of more sniffing incidents that demanded teachers to intervene, it kind of dawned on Keith that nothing would probably ever be the same now. So he decided to isolate himself in his dorm room as much as the faculty would let him. Shiro was not happy when he came back in early August and had to practically knock Keith’s door down. Apparently he’d heard from his colleagues what happened and decided to cut his vacation short and come back early as an instructor for the fighter pilots, which made Keith feel even worse about the whole situation. He was handling it just _fine_ , but now he’d ruined Shiro’s summer. Shiro was having none of that though and forced Keith out of his nest in his dorm that he didn’t even bother to pick apart after that first heat when he presented, he was due another heat in late august/early September anyway. He made sure Keith was getting out his frustration and all the pent up energy that he’d repressed the past two months by working him to the bone in the flying simulators and the training arena. Shiro was making it his mission to get him out of this depressive episode. Keith wouldn’t go as far as calling it one of his episodes, though he could see why Shiro would think so. He was just tired of the constant onslaught of alphas and betas that tried to take care of him or bring him gifts or god forbid _scent_ him again. The worst part was that he was feeling guilty for not accepting being treated this way. It was as if it was expected of him to fawn over all the courting gifts and just fall to his knees and suck the dick of every suitor, and be _thankful_ for it. Honestly, he wouldn’t even mind the gifts or people being nice to him if it wasn’t so obvious that they all had ulterior motives. Keith had never had a problem with his secondary sex before, but now he was seriously doubting the omega’s place in the world. Was this it? Was this going to be his life? In that case he would much rather be a beta, or even alpha. Well, not one of _those_ betas or alphas. Keith wouldn’t ever do what they do to anyone.

He just wanted it all to go away and be like before. But he couldn’t go back to hiding in his dorm, Shiro wouldn’t allow it, so he decided to just keep acting exactly the same as he did before presenting, unavailable and unreachable. Begging Shiro to scent him just a little now and then with his protective alpha scent so the other alphas could back off did actually help a little, even though Shiro thought it would be inappropriate at first. Keith thought he was being stupid since everyone already knows he was practically adopted into Shiro’s family, and it’s common for alphas to scent their omega siblings if necessary. The other teachers just seemed to be relieved when the amount of accidents involving Keith decreased at least a bit. Maybe now they would all realize that Keith was not interested.

But then right when school was set to start again, and he could feel the annoying—yet slightly pleasant—buzz of preheat under his skin, Lance McClain walked back into his life, and he was about to ruin everything.

 

.

 

“You’re going to miss out on at least the two first weeks of school,” Ms. Arreola, the omega counselor, mentioned in a concerned voice to him when she dropped by to confirm the heat-leave notification Keith had sent to her. She was one of the few faculty members of the Garrison that Keith actually sort of liked. She patted him on his arm before getting up from her leaning position on his bedtable and brushed of some invisible dust from her skirt. “So you better start reading up on the syllabus and keep track of what you’ll be missing.”

Keith groaned as a response, which he thought was appropriate since he was in the middle of his preheat, prohibited from leaving his dorm. It only took him two days of school before the entirety of Garrison knew about his upcoming heat, and by then the other students were apparently so interested in that they couldn’t keep their eyes on the teacher during the lectures. Obviously the only option was to pull Keith out of class.

“I know, Keith, and I’m sorry. I wish I could do more,” she said, mumbling the last bit but Keith heard her anyway, and he didn’t blame her. She had stood on his side ever since he arrived at the Garrison and had to attend regular meetings with her, you know, since he was most likely going to present as an omega sooner or later. She was the one giving him all the information on what that might be like and how to act if it ever happens in an awkward situation—which it did, so Keith was forever grateful to her. She had also fought tooth and nail for Keith, and other omega students, to not have to be pulled out of class as soon as the other students couldn’t behave around them. She, just like them, couldn’t understand why that would become a punishment on omegas instead of the alphas and betas that were misbehaving.

“Call me if anything happens or if you just need someone to talk to. You have my number.” She gestured pointedly at the paper on his desk where she’d written down in capital letters OMEGA COUNSELOR, MS. ARREOLA and then her phone number, since Keith had lost her number so many times. When he only gave another grunt as an indicative that he heard her she sighed softly and left the room. Keith was quickly bored by the containment of his room and decided to just lay on his back and stare up into the ceiling, wishing he was just about anyone else right now. Seriously, this was torture for someone like Keith, who really couldn’t handle staying still in one place more that for a minute.

He did manage to close his eyes long enough to fall into a light slumber, tough he had maybe only been laying half asleep like that for only a few minutes when a scent started to trickle over him, a scent that did not belong in his dorm. He immediately sat up and stared at his door. What the fuck? These doors are supposed to be completely scent-proof. He’s not supposed to be able to smell the alpha standing on the other side of it!

Keith scrambled out of the nest and made his way to his door, ready to catch the dumb alpha red handed. Only, when he opened his door, he was not ready for the alpha in question to be exactly _this_ alpha, and he was most definitely not prepared for the onslaught of _alpha scent_ to consume him the way it did. He shivered involuntarily, his inner omega utterly pleased with the salty ocean smell, reminding him of adventure, wilderness and excitement, of loyalty, friendship and _mate_ , and the whole ordeal royally pissed him off.

“What the fuck are you doing outside my door, Lance?” he asked stiffly. Lance stood frozen right by the door, only a few inches from Keith, his eyes were blown wide open as he realized the door wasn’t closed anymore and that the person who lived there stood before him.

“ _Keith_.” His name came out as a strangled sound from deep within the alpha’s throat, as if he were the last person he would ever want to see. That kind of hurt.

“Great, you still remember my name,” Keith snapped harshly. He really wanted to cross his arms over his chest, but he wasn’t sure he could control his hands from accidentally settling on the alpha’s firm shoulders instead. “Good job, Lance. Now why are you here?” he inquired, clenching his jaws together to strangle the bothersome urges. Lance blinked dumbly a few times, his long eyelashes fluttering up and down.

“Uh, what? No, I was just passing—I wasn’t, heh, you know—“ The alpha licks his lips sheepishly and continues. ”I’m just walking like a normal person, just in the, uh, corridor like a regular… person—so what are _you_ doing here?” Lance running his mouth had a weird effect on Keith. It always has. He can’t help feeling rather amused about the awkward but familiar alpha in front of him, so he lets his cold façade drop in exchange for a smirk.

“I live here. This is my dorm, Lance,” he says, making sure to point it out to the exceptionally slow alpha by leaning on the doorframe.

This also happens to be the exact moment where Keith picks up on the pheromones Lance is, probably unconsciously, broadcasting out to Keith. It’s a weird mix of distress, anxiety and… arousal? Lance gulps loudly and Keith follows the motion of his prominent Adam’s apple with interest as it travels down his strong neck. Then he gulps again, and a chuckle escapes Keith’s lips as he feels a wet spot of slick grow in his boxers. Keith can’t help feeling as if everything has led up to this moment. _Of course it had to be Lance_ , he confirms to his inner omega and wants to chirp in excitement. He stares into the alpha’s deep, dark blue eyes, and he’s pleased to see that they’re just as gorgeous as ever, and Keith kind of wonders if this is _the_ moment everyone’s been talking about. Then he realizes that Lance is staring at him and can probably see this revelation in his eyes so he looks down in sudden embarrassment. Only, now his gaze is locked onto the stack of baskets and wrapped boxes on the floor. A sudden wave of nausea and betrayal hits him somewhere deep in his core.

“Are you the one who’s been leaving these outside my door?” Keith can’t help the betrayal to filter onto his voice as he directs the question to the dumbfounded alpha.

“No!” Lance glances down on the stack of gifts before shooting his head up to stare back at Keith. He’s sending soothing pheromones out to calm the omega down. “No, I just got back to campus, like, this morning, I’ve been with my family in Cuba the whole summer break and played with my siblings that I haven’t seen in _forever,_ and I’ve swam in the ocean because the water is fucking turquoise back there, swear to God, and no, I didn’t bring you anything,” Lance states finally, and Keith had almost forgotten what he was mad about because hearing Lance talk about his family and his siblings and about _home_ makes him so warm and fuzzy inside he just wants to give the alpha a hug. “Here, smell! They don’t even smell like me!” Lance blurts suddenly as if his previous explanation wasn’t enough, and grabs Keith’s shoulder. If this had been any other alpha, Keith would have broken that wrist in three different places right now and had the alpha kneeling on the ground, but this wasn’t just _any_ alpha, this was Lance. And apparently, Keith didn’t mind being manhandled by him at all.

Except he didn’t exactly expect getting his face shoved into Lances neck. He inhaled sharply in alarm and felt fucking _high_ on the natural alpha scent. Another gush of slick poured generously between his thighs, and this time it brought a whimper to his lips. He needed Lance to take him right now, immediately, but the alpha just stood there, one hand with a tight grip on the omega’s shoulder and the other too far away from Keith’s body where it should be. Why was his alpha not responding? Keith decided to take care of it himself and pressed his nose into the spot beneath Lance’s jaw he’s been seeking this whole time and breathed in his alpha’s scent like an addict, the rush gives him the courage to kiss and lick his way to his face where _finally_ he gets a reaction out of Lance who gasps and pulls Keith into a strong embrace. Keith _keens_ with fulfillment at the gesture of possessiveness, practically purring out his alpha’s name. Then as suddenly as the arms circled around Keith’s body, they try to pull away.

“ _Shit, fuck,_ okay—geez, Keith you really need to get off me, like, _right now_ ,” his alpha says, and he sounds distressed. Distressed? Why? Is Keith doing something wrong? He tries to make himself more compliant, making himself smaller, arches closer and melts himself into his alpha’s firm chest. He feels a wide hand on his hip and another on his arm and he can’t help but gasp at the warmth spreading through his body. He pushes himself even further into the embrace, leaning completely against Lance’s strong body. “No, no no no, Keith, fuck, you need to get up.” The protest from his alpha goes half unnoticed, but the arms pushing him away immediately get his full attention. _What the fuck is the problem here, exactly?_ Keith wants to ask Lance, but he can’t focus on getting the words out in the right order when he needs to make sure he stays secure by his alphas frame. He snakes his arms around Lance’s neck and keeps them there, and now he’s got a clear view of his face and his gorgeous, soft lips. Keith can’t even help himself as he leans forward to finally kiss his alpha, but he misses when Lance quickly turns his head away. Something ugly and painful starts to grow right in the middle of the omega’s chest… Does—does his alpha not want him?

“Nope, no, we are not doing this—“ he hears his alpha say and Keith’s knees are just about to buckle in defeat when something gets a hold of him, like a puppet with its strings. “ _Get the fuck off me_ right now, _Keith_.” And Keith can’t do anything but listen. Instinctively Keith knows what this is—an alpha command—and he knows that he’s been able to fight them off before, but this feels completely different. He feels so wrapped up in his alpha’s voice and scent that he can’t even find the will to fight the warmth and safety of this metaphorical blanket. He does exactly what the voice tells him and leaves the comfort of Lance’s arms, and instead he makes up for it by baring his neck wide so his alpha knows that Keith is not being disobedient, he’s only following the instructions.

He can vaguely hear his alpha say something, but Keith is far too focused on being appealing to his alpha so he doesn’t really listen, only tries to twist his neck even further in invitation for his alpha to sink his teeth into his flushed skin. He whimpers weakly in attempt to grab Lance’s attention, but nothing happens. Another whimper slips through his lips and suddenly he is being manhandled again backwards, into his room, into his _nest_. Keith could cry with happiness; this is exactly what he wanted. His alpha is so, so good to him, so kind, so caring and thoughtful. He moans as the soft blankets and intricate layers of his nest brushes against his skin and he hopes his alpha appreciates the time he’s put into the making of the nest. But then the weight of his alpha’s body disappears next to him and Keith immediately latches onto Lance’s shirt, trying to keep him down here with him. Does he not understand that Keith wants him inside his nest with him? Should he be more obvious? He moans again to show his alpha how good he feels, how content he is with him right here next to him. His pheromones chants: _you are welcome, you are welcome inside, please join me in my nest, please, please, alpha._ But his alpha slips away and Keith is left alone in his nest with only a blue hoodie in his hands. He dares to take a deep breath into the cloth and keens at the sensation it brings his body. Then he hears the urgent rush of feet across the floor and looks up in time to see Lance slip out of the door and turn to shut it close. A desperate whine crawls up his throat.

“ _Alpha_ ,” he begs, tumbling out of the bed but it is too late. The door is shut closed and he is alone in here—his _alpha_ is alone out there and Keith can still smell the arousal in the air, Lance’s mixed with his own, but it is more potent, sharp and Keith knows his alpha needs him, knows Lance wants to fuck into him and claim his omega. “Come back, come back, _alpha_.” A wail rips through Keith and he tries to turn the doorknob but something won’t let the door open. Keith let’s another frustrated sound slip through. He doesn’t understand, does his alpha not want to be here? Did something scare him away? Is something keeping him from coming back to Keith? Did… did he read this entirely wrong? Was Lance not even interested in the omega?

It feels like Keith sits curled into himself for an eternity, torturing himself with the questions and ignoring the penetrative ache in his lower stomach, before the door once again opens. He quickly bares his neck in submission to his alpha, but it is not him.

“Oh, Keith,” a familiar, adult female omega croons and comes closer. She smells like small creeks in the forest and clean clothes and stability, a scent that has surrounded Keith for long enough to make him feel safe. That’s when Keith can’t keep back his sobs anymore and they come out in such a speed he chokes on them. The omega comes even closer and pulls him into her embrace—but it’s all wrong, this isn’t Lance and it only makes Keith cry harder.

Everything turns fuzzy after that. His heat has hit him full force and all he can recall is begging for Lance and desperately trying to get to the shirt he knows his alpha left for him to have. Then the memories fade to waves of intense pain and pleasure and longing in the isolation room, sometimes he’s more lucid than others. This is definitely going to be the worst heat of his life.

 

.

 

Keith ignores the knocking on his door for as long as he can. He knows that Ms. Arreola will come in eventually no matter if he answers or not but he decides to see how long she’ll keep this up. The swoosh of the door opening tells him her limit is at 11 unanswered knocks.

“Keith,” she speaks softly into the room. Keith doesn’t answer, only tries do bury himself deeper beneath the layers of blankets and pillows he’s evacuated into. Ms. Arreola hums gently and he can hear her footsteps circulating the gigantic bed in the room until she’s standing in front of the lump that contains his body in the far corner.

Keith’s heat has been over for a few hours now. He’s still in the isolation room though because it is recommended for omegas to get a winding-down time to separate themselves from their nest. He knows that Ms. Arreola and Shiro’s been waiting for him to get out, but Keith hasn’t even started trying to detach himself from the nest. He doesn’t want to leave. He doesn’t want to face Shiro’s pity or have to have a long talk with Ms. Arreola about what happened. He definitely doesn’t want to face Lance.

He’s been thinking a lot about what happened. Or mostly about what will happen when he goes out of this room. Lance is probably disgusted by him now. It’s not _proper_ for an omega to just throw themselves at an alpha like that—definitely not one who’s not even courting him. Fuck, Lance hasn’t even tried to court him. When Keith asked about the gifts by his door Lance looked revolted by the thought of giving Keith courting gifts, and Keith still clung to him like a desperate omega, calling Lance his—his… _his alpha._

The embarrassment and shame keeps Keith burrowed in the blankets and he hears Ms. Arreola sigh.

“I know this is probably not what you want to hear, but I have to say it,” Ms. Arreola starts. “You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of, Keith.”

He whimpers softly in protest from his cocoon. God, he never wants to go outside. He can never look Lance into his sweet blue eyes again. The worst part is he can’t stop _feeling_ this way. He can’t stop the yearning for the alpha that sprouts from somewhere deep in his chest. Keith still feels it, that Lance _is_ his alpha. Sometime during that whole mess Keith’s inner omega decided that Lance is it. No one else will do. And Keith hates it and he wants it gone.

“How can I make it go away?” he mumbles, loud enough for Ms. Arreola to hear him. She does, because he hears her gasp lightly, and a gust of soothing pheromones sneaks between the folds of his nest.

“Oh, Keith,” she sighs. She doesn’t speak for a while and Keith is almost certain that he will have to live in this room for the rest of his life, but then she speaks again. “It will go away if you really want it to, eventually. But maybe you should try talking to Lance? Maybe he feels the same way.”

“He doesn’t. Why else would he be so desperate to get away from me that he had to block my fucking door to keep me inside?” Keith answers resigned. 

“Maybe he was trying to protect you?” she hums back. That has Keith scrambling for an exit in his nest. He takes a deep breath of fresh, cool air and glares at Ms. Arreola.

“Protect me? From _what_?” he snaps. “It was literally only him and me in the whole god damn hall, and then he even went _with_ me to my—to my _nest_ , and I felt so safe but he just left me there. That is not protecting, that’s rejection,” he huffs and can feel tears burn in the corner of his eyes. He blinks quickly to get rid of the feeling. Ms. Arreola only looks at him until he’s finished.

“Keith. Those don’t have to be the only two options. Maybe he was trying to protect you from himself? Maybe Lance felt as if he couldn’t get your consent, and instead tried to get you to the safety and privacy of your dorm? Maybe he was just trying to follow the rules. You know we don’t tolerate students to attend other students’ heats unregulated.”

At this Keith blushed again, another wave of embarrassment trickling into his scent. Great, not only does he sound like a desperate omega, but also a _slutty_ omega. 

“I know,” he mumbles, refusing to meet her eyes. She decided to make this easy for him.

“All I’m saying is that maybe Lance didn’t push you away for the reasons you seem to think of. Maybe he’s eager to talk to you after this? And if what you’re telling me you’re feeling is what I think it is, then maybe you have a better chance with him than anyone.” Mr. Arreola smiles kindly at him, and Keith takes his time contemplating her words.

“You really think he likes me?” he asks finally, sounding like a little school girl with a crush. Ms. Arreola laughs lightly.

“I know you’ve known you’re an omega since you were born Keith, but actually presenting as an omega is a completely different thing. I get that you feel insecure about your secondary sex and all that it entails right now—but Keith, you are an amazing omega,” she says, leaning towards him, as if he will absorb the words better form a closer distance. “You are smart, strong and independent. You have a big heart and you know what you want. Don’t ever forget that your worth is never whatever some alpha thinks of you.”

This is not the first time that Keith’s felt an overwhelming need to hug Ms. Arreola, tough he’s never given in to the feeling, but he does quirk his lips for a moment. It seems to be enough for her.

“Good. So, are you ready to get out of here and maybe take a shower?” she asks kindly, but pointedly. Keith’s blush rushes back immediately.

“Fine. But tell Shiro to stay away. I don’t have the energy to handle his hovering right now.” This brings a lough out of Ms. Arreola.

“I’ll make sure he’s occupied,” she says, patting the bed before walking towards the door. “You’ve got an hour, okay?”

The first thing Keith did before starting the draining task of detangling all the blankets and sheets on the bed was to carefully take out Lance’s hoodie from the center of the nest. He brings it up to his nose and breathes into the soft fabric. It still smells unabashedly like the alpha and Keith smiles into the scent. Keith had made sure to not tint it too much with his own unruly heat scent because of this exact reason that he still wants to keep this part of Lance on it. He’ll probably be able to scent himself with it for at least a few weeks ahead. This made the omega in Keith chirp with satisfaction.

“He likes me,” Keith said firmly and brought the hoodie over his head to wear. The feeling of the fabric on his own skin caused goosebumps to appear over his arms. Now he smelled completely like a mix of his and Lance’s scents and Keith keened softly at the sensation. Lance really smelled like _his_ alpha, there was just no other way of explaining it. Now there’s just the issue of making him understand that Keith is _his_ omega, but Keith was determined. He’ll show Lance what a good omega he can be.


	2. Being Omega

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just got my new computer so this fic is officially back in business! Also have I already told you guys how this au is completely out of my control???? New characters just plop up everywhere man I don't know anything anymore  
> anyway, I hope you enjoy this second chapter (although it's not as much klance as I'd hoped, but don't worry there'll be a lot of them in the next one!)  
> #givekeithmorefemalerolemodelsandfriends

”Knock knock.”

Keith swirled around from folding Lance’s hoodie and quickly threw his blanket over it when he heard Shiro’s voice at his door. Shiro chuckled at this and took a step into his dorm.

”You do know you don’t have to say ’knock knock’ at the same time as you’re knocking, right? Especially since you already opened the door,” Keith huffed and folded his arms across his chest.

”You seemed pretty preoccupied, I just wanted to make sure I got your attention,” Shiro answered and walked further into the room to sit down at the desk chair.

Keith huffed again but turned back around to the bundle of blankets and clothes on his bed. Most articles were from his heat, but let’s be honest, some are just old laundry that he’s been too lazy to get cleaned.

”So, Keith,” Shiro started and Keith could already feel the dread forming a pit in his stomach. ”Are you okay? I just thought we could talk a bit.”

Keith sighed because this was exactly what he feared would happen and why he asked Ms. Arreola to keep Shiro away for as long as possible. But he could also hear the genuine concern in the way Shiro talked to him. He is one of the only people Keith cares about who also cares about Keith, so he tried to suck it up and just ride through whatever weird talk Shiro felt entitled to having.

”I’m fine Shiro,” he said and pulled at a thread in his worn shirt.

”Yeah, sure, totally,” Shiro said and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. ”I just thought we could still talk about it, you know. Just two bros talking.”

Keith groaned at that.

”Actually maybe you should just stop talking. Like, forever.”

”Keith,” Shiro said, all disappointed and stuff.

”Fine. Okay, let’s talk.” Keith sat down on his bed and brought his knees up to his chin. Shiro raised both his eyebrows at his display but powered through.

”So Ms. Arreola told me Lance went back to class a few days ago, and you’re going to physics class today that you share with him, right?” His voice had gone soft suddenly, which made Keith feel like a child with the way he was acting. Still he only shrugged his shoulders at the statement because how else was he supposed to answer. ”Right,” Shiro said, clearly struggling with how to proceed this conversation. Keith didn’t get why he felt the need to talk about it at all. ”I just—I don’t know Keith, I guess I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

”I said I was fine,” Keith mumbled, still avoiding Shiro’s inquiring eyes.

”Yeah, and I don’t believe you,” Shiro said.

”What? Why wouldn’t you believe me?” Keith sputtered and dropped his hands from the iron grip around his legs, staring at his mentor across the dorm. Shiro gave him an odd look.

”You like him,” he said simply, causing Keith to sputter even more. ”And I’m not saying that to be a meanie—” _meanie?_ Keith mouthed back at him, ”— _however_ , sometimes you need a reality check and that’s what I’m doing. You like this Lance, and he is an alpha, and as your friend I feel that it is my responsibility to—”

”No! Shiro, _stop_ _talking_!” Keith shouted and hid his flaming red face in his hands. ”Please just, god, stop talking. Ms. Arreola already talked to me about everything and you really don’t need to say anything at all.”

”Keith, I’m just trying to look out for you,” Shiro continued as Keith sunk further into his bed to hide from the mortifying experience that is Shiro trying to have _the_ _talk_. ”You’re being a baby,” he said and Keith can tell that he’s getting annoyed. Keith removes his hands from his face and glares over at Shiro with all the contempt he can muster.

”I do not need you to look out for me.”

”Well, too bad because I’m still gonna,” Shiro says and glares back.

”Who’s the fucking baby now?” Keith exclaims.

”Language!”

Keith and Shiro stares at each other for a few seconds before Shiro both groans and giggles in a weird combination.

”You are by far the biggest baby,” he says and rubs two fingers in the area of his nose between his eyes. Keith doesn’t think that deserves more than an eye roll in response. ”But there were actually some other things I wanted to talk to you about.” Keith perked up a bit at the switch of subject. ”And I had a whole speech prepared which you so rudely interrupted, so here goes my not equally as well thought out words.” Shiro stopped there only to take a deep breath—and for some reason people don’t think he is dramatic when really Shiro is the most dramatic person Keith has ever met—before leaning forward again and looking at Keith with those gentle, caring eyes. ”Uh, Keith, there are some rumors going around.”

”Okay?” Keith says pointedly, trying to cover the way his eyes can’t stay focused on Shiro.

”And you should probably know about them before you go to class.” Shiro stops there and Keith’s is starting to get frustrated with the way Shiro simultaneously tries to tell him whatever it is he came here for and also keep him safe or whatever. He raises both his eyebrows to get Shiro talking again. ”And I know I’m not like… hip with it—” here Shiro even stops himself to cringe at his words, ”ugh, ignore I even said that. What I’m trying to say is that I heard some kids talk about you and it’s some nasty stuff that both you and I know aren’t true. Just don’t listen to what they’re saying, Keith. Both you and Lance knows what really happened and that’s all that matters—”

Keith had started to sink back into his bed during Shiro’s monologue but shot right up again at the mention of Lance’s name.

”What! What are they saying about Lance?” He stressed. If Keith has caused bad rumors to go around about Lance then he will never forgive himself, and even worse, _Lance_ will probably never forgive him.

”It’s not that bad, I promise." Keith could smell the calm pheromones Shiro was pumping out into the room and took a deep breath. "And frankly I don’t really care about what they say about Lance. He’s an alpha, Keith. And you know… you know they don’t say as much bad stuff about alphas when it comes to stuff like this.” The corners of his mouth went down as he spoke and he looked resigned at the finality of it all.

”What are they saying?” Keith demanded, although a bit lackluster.

”Apparently someone saw when they got you out of your room to get you into an isolation room, and uh, you were pretty out of it by then.” Shiro scratched the back of his neck but refused to drop Keith’s gaze. ”You were shouting for, uhm, your alpha I believe. And a hoodie?”

Keith groaned loudly and fell backwards into his bed, fully intending on never going back to class. He wanted to die there. Why was this his life? These rumors have probably reached Lance by now and Keith honestly doesn’t know what to do with that. How did Lance react? Is he angry? Confused? _Happy_? Keith sure is all three of them.

”So I guess that was… it. I kinda wanted to talk to you about the whole ’ _your_ alpha’ thing but you don’t seem up for it so I should go. Can’t keep you from class.” Keith groaned even louder and heard Shiro chuckle. ”You’re going to be alright, kid.” A pat on his shoulder and then he could hear Shiro close the door behind him as he left.

Well this was a total disaster. Keith felt kind of bad about not letting Shiro talk to him. He knows Shiro cares and he knows that it makes Shiro anxious when Keith hides away like this—but it’s _awkward_. Shiro is like his brother, he can’t talk about Lance with him. He’s also an alpha. A stupidly caring alpha, but still. Keith has Ms. Arreola for that kind of stuff.

Keith lets himself just feel sorry for himself for a couple more minutes until time was running up and he had to get dressed and ready for class. The last thing he did before leaving the safety of his dorm was to discreetly scent himself with Lance’s hoodie, just for comfort, he told himself, and then shut the door to head for his physics class.

He dreaded it more than anything in his entire life. Now in hindsight he would honestly go through having the talk with Shiro a hundred times over rather than face Lance. The biggest part of Keith, which also happened to be notoriously pessimistic, honestly thought everything would just go to shit. Lance probably doesn’t _hate_ him, but he’s sure Lance must think he’s just a clingy omega. Just something that is bothering him at the moment. Keith did throw himself at the alpha and Lance has never shown any signs of ever intending to court him. And now Keith can only imagine the rumors going around about him. Maybe he’s the school slut now? Keith can’t imagine Lance would want to date someone with that label. Or well, he actually doesn’t want to think of Lance as a person who really cares about rumors or labels. He truly wishes that he’s not. But it is likely that he would want to keep away from Keith and the drama. However, there’s also a part of Keith, small but surprisingly strong, that tells him Lance is his alpha and therefore Keith is Lance’s omega. And that’s that. Even Ms. Arreola seemed pretty sure Lance probably also could feel the thing Keith is feeling. This… bond or whatever. The thing that makes Keith so sure that Lance is his alpha. He must feel it, right? Keith isn’t a _terrible_ omega, the whole heat situation set aside. He’s had a lot of suitors and received many courting gifts only during these few months since he presented. Why would Lance not want to court him? Like fine if he doesn’t want to get involved with all the drama and rumors and stuff, Keith gets that… but if he feels the way Keith feels, then he shouldn’t be able to keep away from him. Maybe Keith should just chill for a few days. Just stay away and let the alpha breathe, and then when the rumors start to fade maybe Lance will go up to him and… talk?

Keith nodded to himself as got closer to the classrooms. He can totally be chill. He can be timid and act like a real omega. He’s sure Lance would like that. He puts his hand on the door and breathes. Everything’s going to be alright. Just don’t throw yourself at him again, let him come to you. Because he will. He has to.

The first thing Keith saw when he entered the classroom was that the teacher wasn’t there yet. At least he seemed a bit lucky today. The second thing he noticed as he walked further into the classroom was that almost every pair of eyes turned on him, and a specific pair of blue eyes burned his skin even as they followed him all the way to his seat. Keith feels a weird electric sensation on his skin as he puts down his books on his table and almost giddily looks up to meet Lance’s eyes.

Lance looks like he’s ready to get up from his seat and walk right over to the omega, and Keith tries to convey through their connected eyes that he is not at all against that idea—but then there’s a tap on his shoulder and the scent of a familiar alpha leaning in close. Keith barely throws him a glance.

”So, Lance McClain, huh?” Adam whispers and Keith can practically feel his sleazy smile from how close he’s standing. Keith has shared tables with Adam in physics class since they both came to The Garrison, and he guesses they’ve kind of been reluctant friends for this whole time as well, but Adam only started behaving like this back in the summer when Keith presented. Keith thinks he might feel some kind of misplaced protectiveness or something. He knows Adam is a good guy, but this is really getting old.

”Go away, Adam,” Keith says without turning around. Something is happening in Lance’s face that makes Keith’s stomach roll uncomfortably. It’s kind of masochistic the way Keith can’t look away from Lance, desperately hoping for him to get out of that chair and just claim Keith as his to the entire class. If Lance was any other alpha he would have already gone up to him, or at least now when another alpha is talking to him. So when the teacher walks in and Lance abruptly whips his head towards the front of the classroom, Keith’s shoulders drop in dejection as he sits down at his table.

”Wow, okay. One heat with an alpha and now suddenly you can’t talk to an old friend? I see how it is,” Adam jokes and chuckles into Keiths neck. Keith shoves his head away and gives him an annoyed look. He knows Adam is not being serious right now, because Adam knows all about the sniffing incidents this past summer, so he wouldn’t pull that shit with Keith. He’s probably just trying to debunk the rumors going around, in his own asshole way. Keith sits on needles for the rest of the lecture, staring at the back of Lance’s head instead of the teacher for too long periods of time. He’s waiting for the alpha to look back at him, to do _something_. But nothing happens. It’s only when the teacher stop talking and everyone start gathering their stuff to leave that Lance finally turns. Keith had been glaring holes into his neck by that point, scrambling out of his seat to greet the alpha. He’s just about to screw everything he’s just told himself before entering the room—fuck timid and fuck waiting for the alpha to approach him first, he should have known Lance wouldn’t be like any other alpha and just go get what he wants—when another pair of eyes disrupts his path. Keith shakes his head in disorientation and is faced with a strange alpha standing in front of him.

”Seriously?” he says as he tries to peer over the alphas shoulder to catch a glimpse of Lance, but then another guy stands right in the way, and something about his scent is off enough for Keith to react. Suddenly a very instinctual voice tells him to back off a bit and Keith takes a tentative step back and stares up at the two alphas.

”Keith Kogane, is it?” The first alpha says and smiles in a way that doesn’t register as nice in Keith’s mind. Keith quickly calculates how fast he would be able to get past the two of them and get to the door before they would be able to grab him, or worse.

”Why?” he asks and glares at him instead of answering the question.

”He _is_ feisty,” the dude behind the first alpha says and leers as if Keith just confirmed something he already knew. Keith wants to hiss at him.

”Why are you standing in my way?” Keith asks and glares at both of them and for some reason they find that so funny they have to laugh. Keith furrows his eyebrows and sneaks a glance around the empty classroom. His heart sinks when he realizes Lance didn’t stay.

”Are you in a hurry, omega?” Keith doesn’t register which one of them said it, but his eyes snap back at them at the ’omega’, at the unnecessary gust of calming pheromones both alphas were pumping into the air around Keith. ”I don’t think he's got any more classes today, do you Cal?” The second alpha says and looks in mock confusion at his buddy.

”No, I don’t think he’s got any classes either,” the alpha right in front of Keith, Cal, says back in a playful tone. Keith bristles at the way he looks at him, like he wants to take a bite or something.

”I have an alpha,” Keith blurts. He curses himself for opening his mouth but it was a completely instinctive impulse to protect himself from predating alphas. Cal only hum’s and sneers at him, feeding on the fear pheromones that Keith can't control from slipping out.

”So we’ve heard,” the second alpha says. Keith shivers and takes another reluctant step back when the alpha leans in to scent him. ”I can smell McClain on you, but I didn’t see him waiting for you outside so I don’t really think he’s the one you’re in such a hurry for.”

Keith is at loss for words. He thought he was done with this shit back in the summer when Shiro came back. He thought he wouldn’t have to be in these kinds of situations before where he feels so powerless and—and _scared_.

”Hey Keith, you still in here?” A voice interrupts the rapid beating of Keith’s pulse. He stands frozen as both the alphas turn around and sees Adam walking back into the classroom. He’s got his usual arrogant grin on his face, but Keith can see the way his eyes are scanning the situation and finally lands on Keith. His nose twitches and something seems to register, his smile falters for a second.

”Adam, my man!” The second alpha says and gives Adam one of those weird hand shakes. Cal greets the alpha enthusiastically with a wide smile and gives him a bro hug.

”What are you two doing here? I thought Viv was having a party tonight?” Adam asks, smoothly turning the bro hug so he’s on the opposite side of before, discreetly putting himself halfway between the alphas and Keith.

”Yeah, she sent me to get her ice from the kitchen, but I though I could come and get her little Cal here as well,” the second alpha, who Keith now kind of recognizes as an alpha from the year above them, says and punches Cal in the arm to which Cal exclaims an offended ’ _hey_!’. Keith tries to make himself as small and unnoticeable as possible, slowly moving away behind Adams frame.

”Dude, you better hurry or she’ll fucking rip your head off,” Adam laughs and crosses his arms across his chest. 

”We were just about to go anyway,” Cal says and rubs his arm, still side eyeing the older alpha. That’s when the older alpha remembers that Keith’s still in the room and catches his eye.

”I didn’t know you were Keith’s alpha, Adam?” He says pointedly but doesn’t let go of Keith’s gaze. Keith automatically shies away even more behind Adam, because there’s just something that’s not right about that alphas eyes, but Adam moves to expose Keith and hooks an arm around his neck instead and laughs, Keith hopes the other alphas doesn’t hear how fake it is.

”Yeah, I fucking which,” he says and leans in closer to Keith. Keith still can’t tear his eyes away from the older alpha. He gets the feeling that he’s analyzing every single move the omega makes. ”No, I’m only here to get his ass moving to Mr. Shirogane’s office.” This time Adam looks down at Keith and forces him to look up at him by pressing his finger under Keith’s chin. ”Did you forget he told you to step by his office earlier?” Adam says and the urgent pressure of his fingers tells Keith he’s just trying to get them both out of there.

Cal suddenly laughs. ”Oh, so that’s the alpha of yours you were talking about, _Keithy_?”

Keith glares back at him, seething, but still not answering.

”Kinky, if I’d known older alphas were your thing then I would have shown up here alone,” the junior alpha says finally, making Cal laugh even more and Adam chuckle awkwardly, at least to Keith’s ears.

”Well, we should probably head out before Shirogane sends out another patrol to find you,” Adam shakes Keith’s shoulders playfully and starts dragging him past the other alphas. Keith’s eyes met once again with the older alpha, who only smiled calmly at him. ”Save me something to drink at Viv’s, okay?” Adam shouted lastly before they exited the room. Adam keeps dragging Keith with him but as soon as they get around the first corner Keith shoves Adam away and grounds to a halt.

”I’m going to my dorm,” Keith says and turns to walk back. Adam takes a grip on his arm and stops him before he takes another step.

”No! Jesus, Keith. At least let me walk with you?” Adam pleads. Keith frowns at him but starts walking again without shrugging off his hand from his arm. Adam sighs but follows. After a minute or so of silence he opens his mouth again. ”Why did you even stop to talk to them?”

”I didn’t,” Keith says between gritted teeth, and he guesses this is as far as he’ll get with Adam ever understanding what it’s like to be an omega. ”I don’t even know who they are. They stopped me from leaving just to talk.”

”I don’t think they stopped you _just to talk_ , Keith” Adam says, barely audible, so Keith elects to ignore the truth of it. Adam just sighed again. ”The guy that stood closest to you is Caleb. He’s in our class but he had physics with Mrs. Keaton last year so that’s probably why you don’t recognize him, and the other one is Charlie. He’s a junior, hangs with Vivienne, Evan and all those alphas, but you know that they’re all buddies with each other,” Adam explains and waves a hand in the air. Keith suddenly feels annoyed by his nonchalance.

”Seems to me like you’re all buddies with them as well,” he says stiffly. This brings Adam right out of his monologue.

”Well… I guess, but it’s not like that, Keith,” he says and looks down to their feet. Keith can smell shame all over him. ”I’m an alpha, and to them that’s the only thing that matters.”

Keith doesn’t know what to say to that. He just feels angry. Angry at Caleb and Charlie for being typical alpha creeps, at Adam for being such a pushover, at Lance for walking away and at himself because he’s so fucking _weak_. He should have been able to handle that situation and not try to hide behind Adam’s back like some pathetic little omega stereotype.

They walk in silence until they reach Keith’s dorm. Adam just gives him an awkward nod before turning away. But this time it’s Keith’s turn to grab his arm.

”Thank you for coming back for me,” Keith says and he really means it. A blush spreads lightly across Adams cheeks, but he just nods again before walking away. Keith watches him disappear behind the corner and goes into his room. The last thing he does before falling asleep is texting Ms. Arreola that he need to talk to her.

 

.

 

”You were wrong,” Keith says and pulls out one of the many boring looking books from Ms. Arreola’s bookshelves. He looks at it briefly and then puts it right back only to keep brushing his fingers absentmindedly across other books.

”About what, Keith? You have to be more specific than that,” Ms. Arreola answers from behind her desk. She’s used to Keith and his inability to sit in one of the comfy chairs purposefully put in her office for students that book an appointment to talk to her.

Keith unconsciously brings his shoulders up a bit when he answers, but the action doesn’t go unnoticed on Ms. Arreola. ”He doesn’t like me,” Keith mumbles, reaching for a book on the top shelf.

”And what makes you say that?” Ms. Arreola says, finally caught up to what this whole conversation has been about. Keith gives up on reaching the book and turns around to lean against the shelf instead.

”I mean, I guess he likes me,” he reasons. ”I just don’t think he feels what I’m feeling.” Just saying it out loud caused an almost tangible pain to appear in his chest.

”But you also like him,” Ms. Arreola counters and looks confused. Keith looks away from her inquiring look.

”I do, and I don’t know what he feels. But he never tried to talk to me yesterday, and today every time I look at him he looks away and I don’t think he feels what I’m _feeling_.” Keith really doesn’t want to explain himself any further, because then he’ll have to tell Ms. Arreola with his own words that he thinks Lance is his alpha, but that he is not Lance’s omega. Nothing hurts more than having to face that. Fortunately, Keith doesn’t have to explain it further, the look on Ms. Arreola’s face says that she understands what he was trying to convey.

”But you said it yourself—you don’t know what Lance is feeling.” She gets up from her desk and walks around it only to sit on it, facing Keith. ”Did you go up and talk to him as I suggested?” She asks, and Keith can only shake is head. ”Then how can you possibly know he’s not thinking the exact same thing you are thinking right now? Perhaps he’s just as scared and insecure as you are.”

”I’m not scared,” Keith defends himself immediately. Ms. Arreola raises an eyebrow.

”Fine. But you are not being very rash or impulsive right now either, Keith, which is very uncharacteristic of you I must say.”

”I guess my time’s up now,” Keith says to that and gets off the bookshelf. Ms. Arreola opens her mouth and glances at the clock but seems to change her mind. A sigh escapes her instead.

”I guess it is,” she smiles kindly at Keith as always and walks with him towards her door. ”You are welcome back whenever, Keith. You know that.”

Keith nods his head and looks down on the ground, feeling a bit guilty for taking so much time getting to the point only to leave as soon as Ms. Arreola digs a little deeper. He opens the door and sees a girl sitting outside her office.

”Oh, and Keith—would you mind telling my next student that she will have to wait about five more minutes? Thank you.” Ms. Arreola smiles pointedly and closes the door behind him. Keith only stares at the closed door and then over at the girl sitting in the waiting chair on the opposite side of the hall.

”Uh, so did you catch that or…?” Keith said awkwardly and gestures towards the door. The girls cracks up in a smile.

”Yeah, I caught that,” she chuckles. Keith can’t really tell if she’s chuckling at him or if the whole situation just is funny to her.

”Great,” he says and immediately starts to leave.

”Wait!” The girl shouts after him, a bit too loud for the quiet hallway they’re in. Keith winces and turns around towards her again. ”Fuck, sorry,” she laughs. Keith has no idea what’s going on. ”Sorry,” she says again and raises a palm in the air. ”I just—you’re Keith Kogane, right?” She asked finally, still smiling. Keith’s starting to wonder if that’s just her default expression.

”Uh,” what’s up with people and demanding to know if he’s Keith Kogane? ”Yeah?” He says.

”Wow, uh, okay. Sorry, I didn’t think I would get this far to be honest,” she rambles, ever smiling. This time Keith is really confused.

”You say sorry a lot,” is the thing that escapes his mouth instead of an inquiry as to what the fuck she was talking about.

”Uh, sorry?” The girl says again. Keith frowns. ”No, really. I didn’t—I mean this isn’t me trying to bother you or anything, or I mean, I guess I kinda am bothering you but it’s not my intention at all, like, I just saw you and thought I should talk to you, so I guess what I’m trying to say is, uh, hello?” Even the girl looked confused at the end of that sentence. But honestly Keith was kind of warming up to the idea of someone as awkward in conversation as he is himself—and if her rambling kind of reminded him of Lance then so be it.

”Hello?” He says back. The girl chuckles again.

”Yeah, so uhm, now that that is out of the way—I just wondered if you would like to eat lunch with me sometimes? It’s just, I’ve noticed our lunches fall into the same periods most days and you always seem to get bothered a lot by the alphas so, uh, you can sit with me if you want?” The girl scratched her elbow and smiled more sheepishly at the question.

”You want to eat lunch with me?” Is the only question Keith could think of. The girl looks surprised at the question as well.

”Yeah? Uh, I guess?”

”Why?” Keith demanded.

”Oh, uh, I think I was pretty clear?” She falters but takes a new breath. ”I know you were bothered a lot this summer, especially at lunch. So I thought, I don’t know, I though maybe you’d like to sit with another omega? Someone that can relate and maybe help chase away alphas that get a bit too much?” She didn’t look too hopeful, but her kind smile still stayed on and Keith felt rather chocked at the whole situation.

”What’s your name?” Keith asks out of the blue instead of following the topic of their conversation. The girl perks up though so he guesses there’s no harm done.

”Oh my gosh, I totally forgot to introduce myself!” She rushes towards him and takes his hand in a steady handshake. ”I’m Elizabeth, but everyone calls me Izzy, or Eliza I guess. I don’t mind, so call me whatever.” Keith nods.

”Uh, nice to meet you Elizabeth.”

”You too! Although we’ve, uh, kind of met before? Last year you were fighting with your alpha—McClain, right?—in the hallway and knocked into my locker?” She said although every sentence coming out of her mouth sounds like questions. Keith sputters a little at her calling Lance his alpha.

”Sorry, I don’t—”

”Oh no, it’s fine! I mean I don’t blame you for not remembering, and I’m a junior so we don’t have any classes or anything together. I just remember you because you were the new shiny star cadet,” she says to reassure him, although Keith still feels a bit awkward about not remembering her.

”Okay, uh—”

”Miss Mwangi, I’m ready whenever you are,” Ms. Arreola suddenly said and opened her door. Elizabeth whipped her head around so quickly her braids hit Keith straight in the face. She whipped her head back just as fast.

”Oh, shit, sorry! Oh my god, I’m a mess,” she chuckled again awkwardly and dropped Keith’s hand. He pressed his hand onto his stung cheek but chuckled back at her.

”I’m fine, uh. So lunch?” He asked awkwardly yet again. But Elizabeth burst out in the most radiant smile Keith’s ever seen on a person.

”Awesome! Uh, we share like every lunch except on Tuesdays, but absolutely, just find me tomorrow, or I’ll find you, or something!” She shook his hand again. ”I’ll see you tomorrow, Keith! Don’t forget!” Then she turned around and walked into Ms. Arreola’s office, leaving Keith there feeling as if he just got spit out from a hurricane.

Keith looked up and met Ms. Arreola’s gaze. She gave him a conspiratorial wink before closing the door and Keith stood still in the now quiet hall, trying to let the past five minutes sink in.

”Huh,” Keith huffed in resignation and turned to walk back to his dorm.


	3. Alpha Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look at me posting two chapters in the same week also I dare you all to find the John Mulaney reference  
> happy reading!!

Keith is not a stranger to random alphas getting up to talk to him, but this is getting a bit excessive. Some days there have been alphas—and betas—waiting for him outside his dorm with breakfast, ready to hassle him the first thing in the morning. Fortunately Shiro put a stop to that as soon as Eliza realized what was going on and went and told him about it. Eliza had actually been putting her nose in a lot of the alpha incidents surrounding Keith, and he doesn’t really know what to feel about that. He’s been sitting with her at lunch most days, and the days he doesn’t he’s either with Adam or just alone… or well, as alone as he can get. The harassment doesn’t stop. Alphas randomly sit down next to him and offer him food from their plates, as if Keith neglected to get his own food or something. The worst part of it is that Lance doesn’t seem to care _at all_. Keith has lost count how many times he’s rejected an alpha’s offer to keep him company, or take him out, or feed him just so Lance can see that he’s not interested in any other alphas. He’s tried so many times to make the dumb alpha intervene and end it all, but Lance just either doesn’t get it or he just doesn’t want to. A small voice, that sounds a lot like Ms. Arreola, tries to tell Keith that he should follow the omega counselor’s advice and just go up himself and talk to the alpha, but something in Keith just makes him freeze every time he even entertains the idea. Being rejected like that is just too much for him to handle. Keith is holding on to the hope that Lance is just stupid, but he’s getting more desperate as the weeks go by. By now he’s not even scenting himself with Lances hoodie only for his own personal comfort, it’s more to keep the other alphas at bay with Lance’s alpha scent.

Lance doesn’t seem to have any issues fighting with Keith though, if flight class with Shiro is anything to go by. It’s not that Keith hates it—he actually rather enjoys their banter—but Lance is acting so strange recently and keeps sending such mixed signals to the omega that Keith just doesn’t know how to act anymore. Either they’re just fighting as usual, just rivals being rivals or something like that, or they’re flirting. At least Keith thinks it’s flirting.

”Psh, can’t you do any better that that, star pilot?” Lance says in one of the first flight classes after Keith’s back from his heat, just as the omega steps out of the flying simulator. Keith was actually doing pretty good but Lance hasn’t ever been able to _not_ comment on his flying so Keith takes it with stride—and if he’s also a bit pleased that the alpha even is paying him attention then so be it.

”Did you just try to insult me and call me _star pilot_ in the same sentence, Lance?” Keith laughs in a low voice and takes a step closer to the alpha. ”Doesn’t that seem a little contradictory?”

Lance gulps and takes a step back as if he wasn’t expecting Keith to respond. Keith can’t help but notice how nice and soft his brown hair looks today so he doesn’t even notice when Lance ultimately looks down on Keith’s lips and shivers.

”Uh, that’s… that’s not what I meant to say,” the alpha begins and looks up at the omega’s eyes again when Keith takes yet another step closer. ”I need to go and, uh, stretch?” Keith wasn’t sure if he was supposed to answer that, but it didn’t really matter. Lance immediately turned his back on Keith and hurried away and didn’t stop until he was at the other side of the room, the furthest away he could possibly be from Keith. That kind of hurt.

”Ouch, that was painful,” a voice said from beside him. Keith turned his head slightly in acknowledgement of Adam but couldn’t stop staring at Lance, who was now throwing not so discreet glances back at them.

”I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” Keith said in what was meant to be an annoyed complaint but came out much more earnest and pathetic than he’d intended. Adam sighed and Keith was confused by the small gust of pheromones that reached him that he couldn’t read beyond frustration.

”You’re not doing anything wrong, Keith,” the alpha answered in a dejected tone. ”You’re perfect,” he said even lower. Keith turned and stared into Adam’s eyes, but Adam wasn’t looking back at him no matter how hard Keith was trying to catch his gaze.

”Uhm, thank you,” Keith said, a bit awkwardly. He really didn’t think him and Adam had that kind of friendship where they were supposed to be supportive of each other. Keith thought he was more of a last option thing for Adam while the alpha’s other friends weren’t around.

”Look, Keith,” Adam said and turned completely towards the omega. Keith pulled in a breath at how close he suddenly stood to him. ”You are not the problem here, okay? It’s not your fault that Lance is such an asshole.” Adam threw a dirty glance at Lance and then looked back at Keith, much softer. ”That he doesn’t see what a good omega he’s got in front of him.”

Keith’s face was flaming red by that, he was sure of it. Adam seemed to suddenly realize what he just said and cleared his throat loudly.

”So don’t blame yourself.” And with that the alpha turned around and went back to some beta Keith knows he hangs around with a lot. Keith stood still for a while only to melt what just happened, until he looked up and met Lance’s blue eyes already glued onto his, and he forgot the conversation for that day.

The weeks passing after that had Keith thinking a lot about what Adam had to say. That he’s a good omega, and stuff. It’s not that he’s ever really thought of himself as a bad omega, but it was so much simpler before he presented when the only person who judged him was himself. Now everyone seems to think they’ve got a say in how he’s supposed to behave, and sometimes Keith can’t help but listen. Especially now that he’s got an alpha that he really, _really_ wants to impress. He decided after that conversation that he’s got to be better. So he started putting effort into making himself look somewhat pretty in the mornings. Eliza helped a lot with his hair and skin products to use and honestly, for the things Keith does for Lance, the alpha better be fucking gobsmacked when he sees him. He walks closer when he sees the alpha in the hallways, and he tries to touch him as much as possible when they’re close enough, or when the alpha actually stays long enough to talk to him. Keith shows off his neck more, says Lance’s name more, tries to lure the alpha in by being soft and submissive. But Lance doesn’t fall for it. If anything Keith only seems to make the alpha look really uncomfortable.

Then one day he walks in the hallway on his way from physics class which he spent completely staring at Lance the whole time. He really should start paying attention to the teacher or else he won’t be able to pass the big test coming up in a few weeks. He clutches his books tighter in frustration at himself when he spots a familiar brown hair further ahead of him. A flutter in his stomach that he now recognizes so well since it pops up every time he spots the alpha makes him immediately feel in a better mood, and he takes bigger steps to catch up to Lance but stops abruptly in the hall when he sees that another person stands closely—way too close—plastered onto his side. Suddenly it felt as if the whole world was tilting a bit sideways, and he turns around and walks away.

At lunch later that week Keith sits seething between Eliza and Adam. They’re both looking at him in turns, in two totally different ways. While Eliza seems scared Keith’s going to break his fork with the way he’s holding it, Adam looks like he’s ready to break Lance’s face.

”Keith, seriously,” Eliza pleads and presses her hand against his to make him relax. Keith huffs but drops the fork.

”I just don’t understand what’s so good about Sebastian,” Keith mumbles although no one asked. Adam takes a sip of his water and brings it down firmly on the table.

”Well, he’s kind of cute. And he’s really smart, and unafraid,” he says, reorganizing his food so he won’t have to look up at Keith. Keith clenches down on his teeth, and honestly feels a little hurt. He’s sure Adam can smell his distress but the alpha doesn’t say anything else.

”What Adam is _trying_ to say is that Sebastian is a completely normal dude,” Eliza says pointedly and gives Adam a dirty look. ”And there’s no need to be jealous, Keith, they’re not together, okay? I’ve told you that already—I did tell you that, right?” Eliza furrows her eyebrows and hums to herself. Keith whips his head around back towards her and stares.

”What,” he hisses through his teeth. Eliza stares at him with her enormous dark brown eyes and gasps.

”Oh, no, didn’t I tell you that?”

”You didn’t,” Keith groans back and stares back over at Lance’s table. ”But your info seems a bit late to date anyway… They look pretty _together_ right now.”

Over at their table Lance talks loudly enough for even Keith to hear his voice, with Sebastian clinging to his arm, occasionally getting shoved around by Lance’s big hand gestures. Sebastian doesn’t seem to complain from his seat though.

”No, I’m pretty sure they’re not together,” Eliza says promptly and goes back to eating. Keith gives her a weak look and sighs.

”How are you so sure?” He asks. Eliza glances up at him with a raised eyebrow.

”You do know I have other friends that I occasionally talk to and get juicy gossip from?”

Keith shies back and blushes, but only shrugs his shoulders in response.

”They could be your friends too. I know they all like you,” she continues but talks a bit lower this time, as if Keith is an animal that she doesn’t want to scare away. ”Honestly, I never really got the whole lone wolf thing you’ve got going on. You don’t seem to like being alone either.”

”What _lone wolf_ thing?” Keith demands, surprised at her words. Lone wolf kind of implies Keith’s alone by his own choice, which is fair he guesses, but not really true. Keith doesn’t put a lot of effort in to making friends, sure, but he’s not against the idea. And he does feel lonely sometimes. He’s just lucky to have had Lance and Adam to some extent.

”Oh, uh, nothing really. I’ve just noticed that you avoid omegas, you know, there’s not a lot of us here at the Garrison so it’s hard to not notice when you presented and didn’t reach out to any of us. I think I was the first omega you actually let help you, so that’s what I mean, I guess.”

Keith looked down at his food, contemplating what she just told him.

”Omegas don’t like me,” Keith just said. ”I don’t think there’s a lot of people who likes me.”

At that even Adam snorted.

”Uh, okay. Well, as wrong as that is, I guess you’re entitled to your wrong opinion,” Eliza said. ”But you don’t… _actually_ think omegas don’t like you, do you?”

”I—I just assumed you all kind of hate each other,” Keith confessed, and now that he said it out loud he realized what a shitty thing that was to even think. Eliza stared at him in stunned bewilderment. Adam chuckled and knocked his elbow into Keith’s ribs.

”Jesus Christ, you’re kind of an asshole, Kogane, aren’t you?” He said and laughed even more. Keith threw him a glance and rolled his eyes.

”Oh my god. _Keith_. No! Omegas are too rare at Garrison to hate each other. We’ve got each other’s backs, like, you won’t even believe. I know every single omega here, no matter what year they’re in. And we always try to make sure every omega feels safe and has someone to hang out with. Do you know how long we’ve all tried to establish contact with you? God, you’re like an alien, Keith. Or a cryptid,” Eliza rambles and grabs his arm as if to transfer all her care and love through physical contact.

”Uh,” is all Keith gets out.

”Keith, I’m going to introduce you to all of my friends— _all of them_. You can’t escape now.” She smiles her beaming smile and Keith can’t help but feel a bit touched by her commitment to him.

”Well, now that that’s established, let’s go back to your alpha troubles,” she says and sits down in her seat, a smug grin taking over her previous smile. Keith thinks he can hear Adam groan even louder than him for some reason.

”What alpha troubles… Lance doesn’t like me, he’s been very clear about that,” Keith says and tries to hide his real hurt behind a played up grumpy voice. He’s not ready to tell Eliza about his _real_ alpha troubles with Lance, about the whole thing about Keith being sure Lance is his true mate and all, but the whole thing being unrequited.

”Don’t start again, Keith. God, you’re a catch and Lance will see that, okay?” Adam mumbles and focuses once again really intensely on his food. Keith doesn’t know how to answer so he just doesn’t. Adam has been super odd lately with weirdly flattering comments like these.

”I’m with Adam on that one. You’re really selling yourself short, Keith. Lance is clearly as gone for you as you are for him. There’s something else going on here, I just can’t figure out what…” Eliza says and leans forwards to stare at Lance with Bobby Fischer like intensity.

Keith sighs, still not believing her at all.

”Well,” Adam says and straightens up. ”He _has_ been flirting with you, so he must like you at least a bit?” Keith looks at him and glares, and Adam just raises his palms in defense.

”That doesn’t mean anything. He flirts with _everyone_ ,” Keith counters and sinks down on the table, glaring towards Lance’s table where the alpha is blushing at the way Sebastian is playing with their braided fingers. ”Exhibit A.” Keith gestures over to them.

Adam shrugs but Eliza looks even less impressed.

”But we know that they’re not together so you still got a shot.”

”But how exactly do you know that?” Keith asks.

”Did I not just tell you about all omegas being my best friends? Did I hallucinate that whole conversation?”

”Okay, _fine_. So what exactly did you hear?” Keith said and poked around in his food with his fork. Eliza clears her throat.

”Okay, so I’m sure I’m breaking some kind of omega code or something, but I’m closer to you than I am Sebastian and this is a code red so I feel that I can tell you even though I will absolutely feel bad about it afterwards, but still, this is important and you _need_ to know so—”

”Eliza. It’s fine,” Keith said at the same time Adam bursted out ”Oh my _God_ , doesn’t she have an off button?”

”Fine, God, Jesus, okay. So I know all this because I’m good friends with Sebastian’s best friends, omegas you know, and I know that Sebastian is super into Lance, but like that’s not a surprise—who _isn’t_ into Lance?—and he’s really trying hard to get Lance but for some reason it’s just not working out for him? They said something about Lance being super elusive and pulling back whenever Sebastian feels like he’s responding to his moves.” Eliza rubs her chin in contemplation. ”Maybe he’s not responding to Sebastian because he’s secretly super in love with you, but he’s too afraid to tell you because he thinks you’re way out of his league and is convinced you would never love him back?” She turned to look at Keith. ”You _can_ be pretty intimidating.”

”Uh, that’s the most stupid thing I’ve ever heard.”

”Yeah, my bet is on McClain just being the dumbest dumbass to ever dumbass. I don’t get what all of you omegas see in him,” Adam said.

”I’m just saying,” Eliza said and shrugged. ”Keith should totally go up to Lance and just talk to him. We know he’s not dating anyone, so what’s really stopping you, Keith? You’ve been holding off for too long.”

Keith didn’t respond and remained staring at Lance across the cafeteria. He watched the way Lance didn’t seem as into Sebastian’s touches as Keith previously thought. Maybe he really just has to talk to him? They haven’t done any real talking that really matters and that’s part Keith’s fault for not listening to Ms. Arreola in the beginning. Maybe it’s time to be the rash, impulsive omega he’s known to be.

 

.

 

Physics is their last class that same day, and Keith is determined to get to Lances locker and talk to him before class starts. He’s practically running through the hallway until he’s close enough to spot Lance walking up to his locker and unlocking it. Keith stops briefly and tries to tidy up his hair somewhat, although he has no idea if he’s just making it worse. Then he takes a deep breath and collects himself enough to walk up to the alpha. Rash and impulsive.

”Got yourself a new boyfriend, Lance?” Keith purrs out the first thing on his mind and stops right behind him. He crosses his arms over his chest and juts a hip out. Lance almost jumps at his voice and Keith winces. Jesus Christ, he’s already a failure at being flirty. Then Lance glances back at him and Keith brings back his borrowed suave facade and smirks.

”Uh, what?” The alpha says, his attention back in his locker, completely uninterested in the omega. Keith slumps a bit, but he didn’t run all the way here to give up this early, so he walks over to lean against the locker next to Lance’s and tries to get the alpha to look at him.

”I said: where is your boyfriend? Doesn’t he always wait for you here every day?” Keith tilts his head onto the locker in an attempt at looking cute or whatever and stares at Lance’s face, so he gets to see his uncomfortable expression turn to complete chock.

”What?” Lance exclaims and whips his head around to finally look at Keith. ” _Sebastian_?”

Keith can’t help the grin that spreads across his lips.

”Sebastian,” he echoes, pleased with the reaction he got out of the alpha. He flutters his eyes down and taps a finger against Lance’s bicep that is so conveniently displayed in front of him. The touch makes Lance turn his head away, but Keith can spot the red cheeks even through the alpha’s efforts to hide it.

”He’s not my boyfriend,” Lance says and refuses to look back at Keith, so he continues to tap-tap-tap ever so lightly up and down his arm.

”No?” Keith responds, feeling giddy with how well this is going. Lance shivers and breathes in.

”He’s a friend.”

”A friend,” Keith says just to confirm to himself that they really aren’t dating, which is such a relief. He wasn’t sure if he believed Eliza. Lance glances over at him though and Keith amps up the smirking.

”Why are you repeating everything I say?” Lance says and sounds annoyed, but Keith can’t smell any annoyance on him so he doesn’t get too discouraged. Keith looks away though and brings his hand back to rub it against his elbow sheepishly.

”I’m just making sure,” he says, and it’s the truth. Suddenly Lance turns completely towards the omega and towers unintentionally over him with how close they’re standing.

”Of what?” He asks in his husky voice and Keith feels a bit weak in the knees. He brings his foot back so he can lean away a little from the intensity of the alpha scent emitting from Lance. He’s honestly panicking a little on the inside, trying to figure out what to say since he really isn’t that into confessing all his insecurities about the alpha. That’s when his eyes focus on something behind Lance, a picture of four people with the exact same noses as Lance.

”Is that your family?” Slips out of his mouth before he even realizes that he’s asked a question. He raises his hand and points over Lance’s shoulder to emphasize what he was referring to when he realized Lance probably had no idea where Keith was turning the conversation topic. Lance turns and Keith relaxes now that the alpha’s eyes are off him.

”Yeah,” and the smile in his voice is tangible, ”my mama and my siblings,” he says and Keith can feel the butterflies in his stomach double in quantity. Getting the alpha to talk about his family doubles as a great distraction from the original question and just as a interesting topic in general.

”Do you live by the beach?” Keith asks and leans forward to see the people and the background better in the picture and Lance immediately takes a step back. Keith glances over at him and is delighted by the flustered pheromones clouding around them.

”Uh, yeah. In Varadero, but my dad lives here in the U.S.” Lance’s voice even sounds flustered. God, Keith just wants to bury his face into the alpha’s chest, but he can’t do that. So he just smiles instead and looks at the woman in the picture. She’s got the original Lance McClain smile, which immediately makes Keith like her even more.

”Your mom is beautiful,” Keith says absentmindedly.

”She is,” Lance agrees, of course.

They both look at the picture some more and Keith has never been so sure about Lance as his alpha before as he is in that moment. He even knows now where his scent is from.

”You know,” he begins and without even thinking he blurts out the one thing that is a bit too impulsive for even him. ”You smell like the ocean,” he says and immediately winces. He’s lucky that Lance was looking at the picture with a dopey smile instead of him, but it’s too late to back down now. So he takes a step even closer, close enough that Lance gasps when he whips his head back around to look at the omega. The alpha gulps and the blush spreads across his cheeks and then all over the face and Keith has never been so mesmerized by anything in his whole life. He’s surprised when he can’t smell any discomfort or even anger in the pheromones coming off the alpha, there’s only a mush of warm sun rays and salty ocean waves and _mate_. Keith is so focused on separating all the different aspects of Lance’s scent that he’s completely taken of guard when the alpha opens his mouth.

”You smell like my mama’s cookies,” he says breathlessly, and Keith is floating. Absolutely, positively soaring.

” _Oh_ ,” is what he has to say about that. Lance leans impossibly closer and Keith is so ready to get on his tiptoes to reach all the way up.

”Yeah,” Lance breathes. ” _Oh_ —”

The scent of territorial, furious omega reaches Keith’s nose before the voice does.

”Hey, baby,” Sebastian says and Keith turns his head to the side and stares at Sebastian and the way the other omega tries to circle his arms around Lance. Sebastian smiles sweetly at Keith and then looks over at Lance as he lays his head on the alpha’s shoulder. ”So, what are you two talking about?”

Keith pushes himself of Lance and takes a step back. He feels incredibly stiff suddenly, he doesn’t know what the fuck is happening. Lance looks, well, not confused as much as fucking busted, and then he opens his mouth to answer and Keith just knows he’s going to say something stupid and anger Sebastian even more.

”Uh, just my fam—” Lance begins but Keith immediately jumps in.

”He just let me take a look at his physics notes.” Keith takes another step back and crosses his arms, hugging his physics book forcefully into his chest to make sure he still can feel anything. He feels completely numb.

”Really?” Sebastian says and smiles brightly at Lance, who’s frowning at Keith. Keith takes in that frown and feels so fucking stupid. Sebastian keeps talking but Keith has completely zoned out. All he can think about is the way Lance is looking at him, as if he can’t believe what was about to happen, as if Keith is the problem. Then Lance’s face is ripped out of Keith’s gaze and he gets the full picture of Lance and Sebastian kissing. Keith forces himself to stay put for a few seconds, if only to see if Lance was going to push Sebastian away. He doesn’t, and Keith can feel the telltale burning sensation tickle in his eyes and decides that he’s not needed here anymore. Lance is busy kissing an omega, which is probably exactly what he had in mind anyway for the evening.

As he walks away he can’t even find the urge to stop the tears from running down his cheeks. He just feels so stupid, as if he fell right into Lance’s trap. Maybe Lance had heard about the rumors going around about Keith and felt as if he finally wanted to reap the benefits, as if Keith would just throw himself at him again—which he did. Just a simple lay. Keith hunched over as a particularly violent sob came over him. Lance was lying to him. Playing him. It was all just a game for the alpha and Keith can’t believe he fell for it.

No one stopped him as he pushed through the flow of students hurrying to classes, fortunately the hallway got empty pretty fast the further away from the classrooms he got. He didn’t even look up anymore, slobbering tears all over his hands as he tried to stubbornly wipe them away, as he inevitably walked right into someone.

”Oof,” he grunted and took a step back to look up at the unfortunate student that knocked into him.

”Hey, Keith, sweetheart, why so sad?”

Keith’s eyes widen as he sees Evan grinning in front of him, and he freezes on the spot.

”Fuck off, Evan,” he hisses, though the effect gets a bit dimmed by the way his voice cracks from sobbing. Evan leers down at him, Keith knows he does, but he can’t help responding to the calming pheromones the alpha pumps into the air around them. He can’t help relaxing a bit and just letting himself do whatever the alpha wants him to.

”No, I know you don’t want that—hey, why are you crying, baby?” He responds and cradles Keiths cheek and brushes a few tears away with his thumb. Keith sobs harder and leans into the hand. Evan croons softly, and Keith knows this isn’t right. He knows he should know better, that Evan is a creep and that Shiro would be so furious if he knew Keith was indulging this whole situation—he just… he just really didn’t have the energy to fight it, and it was nice having an alpha caring for him when he was sad.

”I don’t… fuck,” Keith sobs and opens his eyes slightly. ”Evan,” he whimpers and the alpha pulls him into his embrace and threads his fingers into his hair.

”Sweetheart, why don’t you come with me?” Evan mumbles into his hair and Keith squirms. ”You need to get a break and relax, skip class with me?”

”No,” Keith mumbles and pushes away. ”No, I don’t want to. I need to go to my dorm and then get to class.” Keith’s relieved when Evan let’s him go without any fight.

”Fine, honey, you want me to walk you to you room?” He says in a low voice and dries away another tear from Keith’s cheek. Keith looks up to Evan and takes in his brown eyes and pale skin, and the way his hair falls a little over his forehead. He could be such a sweet guy, if only Keith didn’t already know what he was capable of.

”No, it’s fine. I want to be alone.”

”Okay, Keith. I’ll… see you soon then,” Evan said and smiled softly at him and Keith was surprised by how that smile hit him in the chest. ”Take care.” And then he pulled his hand away and walked past Keith to wherever he was going.

Keith briskly got going and didn’t stop until he was heavily leaning on the other side of his locked door. He stood like that, face buried in his fisted hands, leaning against the door in silence, cursing himself for feeling even worse when he was left alone.


	4. Not Alone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to give you guys a heads up that there's some non-con touching in this chapter, nothing too gruesome or detailed but if you don't want to read that part then I suggest you stop reading at "Do you not like me looking at you?" and start again by "As if on autopilot Keith takes a deep breath and speaks". I've bolded those sentences so you don't miss it!  
> Also please tell me if you want me to add a non-con tag, I just didn't really think it was needed here but I will if anyone feels uncomfortable, no worries.  
> please do enjoy this chapter and I'll see ya next update!

Keith can’t tear his eyes away from Lance a few tables over, the way he’s sunk down over the table with his head buried in his arms. Lance hasn’t looked up from this temporary hide-away cave even once during the whole lunch period, and Keith is seriously starting to get distressed.

Was it his fault? Did he ruin Lance’s relationship just because he couldn’t keep his hands off?

Keith had really put in effort to keep away from Lance after the whole locker fiasco the other day. He’d made sure to be as far away from him as possible in any situation. Because if Keith’s sure about anything, it’s that he’s definitely not some pathetic omega home wrecker. But he really can’t help the simmering jealousy rushing through his veins every time he so much as thinks about the alpha. Honestly he doesn’t even blame himself, he knows this is what this bond thing does to people. He literally can’t help it when it feels like someone is trying to carve out his entire heart with a rusty kitchen knife and doing a really sloppy job with it. Every time Lance is even mentioned in his near proximity he has to stop for a second and collect himself—force himself to think of something else than the picture printed onto the inside of his eyelids of Lance and Sebastian kissing.

He stopped scenting himself with Lance’s hoodie. Now it lays folded neatly in the back of his drawer at day time, carefully tucked away so the scent won’t go away (because let’s be real, Keith couldn’t bring himself to throw it away, _that_ would be torture). He realized he can’t walk around smelling like Lance if the alpha wants to find someone else—someone better—to carry his scent.

Keith just wasn’t enough. There’s nothing he can do about that.

But now he’s forced to watch his alpha sulk about another omega.

Lance has been moping around for these past days and it stabs Keith in the heart like nothing else. Apparently he and Sebastian broke up or whatever after the locker thing. Keith knows because Eliza has been defending him to every omega on campus who thinks Keith is a jealous, meddling bitch who couldn’t back off.

Okay, fine. Maybe not _every_ omega on campus. But enough to make Keith feel even worse than he should have. He’s really trying to forget and mind his own business, but it’s hard when people he’s never even spoken to before comes up to him only to tell him how disappointed they are in him and ”how could you do this to Sebastian?”, with a bonus of ”how could you do this to another _omega_?”. As if any of that even matters to Keith. Keith isn’t necessarily sad about breaking them up (a significantly pettier side of him is actually rather thrilled about this outcome), but most of all Keith is _angry_. Why isn’t anyone asking why _Lance_ would do this to _Keith_? Why would he fucking do that to him? Keith’s been asking himself that at night when he lies buried beneath his blankets, nose shoved into Lance’s comforting scent in his hoodie. Why would the alpha respond and flirt back if he had a boyfriend? Keith specifically asked about that part in particular, and still people blame him for what went down. It’s fucked up. And now Lance is sad and heartbroken. And Keith is sad and heartbroken because Lance apparently really must have liked Sebastian to react like this after their break up. A flare of pain erupts deep in the omega’s chest at the thought of Lance wanting someone else, and he suffocates a whimper.

A way to forget the pain— _or bury it_ , a voice sounding a whole lot like Eliza says in the back of his mind—was to indulge in other alpha’s around him. Their attention is something he never thought he would ever want or need, but he realized quickly that it was a good temporary substitute if only to mend together his hurt pride for a while. Keith actually responded for once when a junior alpha asked to walk him to class. He smiled back when a classmate he never spoken to before held open three different doors for him. He even lets alphas sit down at his table at lunch just so he would be distracted enough not to look at Lance moping across the room. Keith is not above admitting he’s letting the alpha’s get a bit more touchy feely when he’s around Lance to make him jealous. Not that he’s sure it’s even working, but it makes him feel a bit better about himself in the moment, at least until the alphas go away and he realizes that Lance couldn’t give less off a fuck.

Speaking of other alphas that’s gone away. Evan has been keeping his distance since Keith bumped into him in the hallway. Keith’s caught him watching him several times, only to be met with a sleazy grin before the alpha turns away and ignores his questioning look. He should be thrilled by finally being left alone by Evan, but he can’t help the ominous feeling from creeping over him whenever he accidentally catches the alpha’s gaze. Which is why he’s surprised by the sudden onslaught of Evan’s scent that day in the cafeteria.

”Keithy, sweetie,” Evan says and sits down next to Keith, interrupting his masochistic glaring at Lance. Keith groans inwardly at the cringe worthy pet names but keeps his mouth shut. It's not worth arguing about, especially not with someone like Evan who’ll only take Keith’s discomfort as fuel to keep on. Also, if he can’t help but preen a little at the alpha’s attention in this weakened state then that’s no one’s business but his own.

” _Uh_ ,” Eliza says pointedly from his other side at the table. Keith doesn’t respond, doesn’t even look into her inquiring—judging—eyes.

”Evan,” he says instead and glances up in acknowledgement at the alpha as he sits down next to Keith.

”How are you?” Evan responds and completely ignores Eliza’s presence. Keith clears his throat again when Eliza shoves her elbow into his ribs.

”I’m fine,” Keith answers Evan’s question instead of Eliza’s impending rending of the situation.

”That’s good, I just wanted to know since you were so upset the other day,” he says and leans closer. Keith recoils, not really because of him invading his personal space, but rather because he brought up the very incident Keith is trying so hard to forget. He throws a quick glance over at Eliza, which she immediately meets with a frown that looks unnatural on her face. Keith hadn’t told her about running into Evan in the hallway that day. He’d actually done his most to avoid talking about that day at all, except for a text that he sent her later that night after he’d finished crying and feeling sorry for himself, which only read ’Your friends were wrong’.

”I don’t want to talk about that,” Keith recovers, putting a gentle finger on the alpha’s arm. Evan looks down at the point where their skin connects and smirks.

”No? Then what would you like to talk about?” He asks, his already dark voice going even darker, forcing Keith to lean in closer to hear him. Keith hums and caresses his finger up and down Evans arm on the table in a random pattern. Then he stops and looks up at the alpha with a playfully defiant glare.

”You’ve been staring at me.”

Evan raises an eyebrow and huffs out a laugh, as if this subject was exactly the kind of ridiculousness he’d thought would come out of Keith’s mouth.

”Yes, I have,” Evan answers completely without shame. Keith pouts slightly.

”Why?” He demands.

**”Do you not like me looking at you?”**

Evan pulls his arm away from Keith’s traveling fingers and searches under the table until he finds Keith’s thigh. Keith goes rigid at the touch.

”Keith?”

Keith hears Eliza saying his name as if on the other side of a tunnel, but he can’t shout back. There’s something about the way Evan’s still smiling, still looking just as much of a normal teenage boy as he did before he grabbed Keith’s inner thigh, even though Keith isn’t smiling back anymore, even though he isn’t responding and clearly emits distressing pheromones sharp enough for the alpha to smell it on him. There’s something about the way he squeezes Keith’s thigh in response to his unease that finally allows Keith to feel scared. Keith hates feeling scared.

” _Don’t_ ,” he growls between clenched jaws, barely audible.

”What?” Evan huffs out and smiles cheekily. He drags his hand further between Keith’s legs. ”You don’t like that?”

”Let _go_ of me,” Keith says louder, trying to sound angry—trying to sound like he’s still in control of the situation—but it comes out far too pleading. Far too close to what he really is feeling. And when the intrusive hand squeezes yet again Keith feels something snap inside of him and he’s got a solid grip on the alpha’s arm, twists it and forces them both to stand up, then he shoves Evan’s head down on the table and keeps him there, pressing down with all his weight, the alpha’s other arm twisted mercilessly behind his back.

**As if on autopilot Keith takes a deep breath and speaks.**

”Listen, you fucking dickwipe,” he says and press harder on Evan’s twisted arm, making the alpha squirm beneath him. ”When people say ’don’t touch me’, they usually mean it. So don’t fucking _keep_ touching them.” Then he shoves him until he falls off his chair and over the side of the table.

Eliza is immediately by his side, her hands on his shoulder, on his arms, her touch grounding him wherever she reaches, but Keith doesn’t even get a second to breathe and collect himself before Evan grips the table to pull himself up and stare at him.

”Yeah?” The alpha breathes and stretches the arm that Keith twisted. ”Well maybe you should stop being such a fucking tease then, Keith? Huh? Maybe you shouldn’t lead alphas on like that,” Keith can’t help taking a step back as the intimidatingly big alpha leans across the table to tower over him, ”strutting around with your scent glands on display and touch alphas with your slinky little fingers like a _slut_ if you don’t want them to touch you back.” Evan looks like a proper alpha in that moment, pheromones pumping into the air around them, huge, strong, _angry_. All three features of which are meant to make omegas submit. Keith glares up at the alpha and absolutely refuses to even bare an inch of his neck in submission. This only seems to incite the alpha even more as he growls lowly and flashes his canines. ”You were fucking begging for it.” A gasp slips out of Keith at the threatening sight of the alpha when another voice echoes through the cafeteria, and Keith has never felt so equally elated and terrified just from hearing a voice before.

”Hey, _asshole_!” The voice immediately demands his attention though every one of Keith’s instincts screams at him to keep track of the dangerous alpha by his own table. His eyes flick over from Evan to Lance who’s standing up by his table, held back from marching over here by his friend with the headband. ”Maybe you should walk away, yeah? And shut the fuck up when you’re at it, literally no one is ever in the mood of listening to you rant about your rape-y sexism.”

Keith winces at the words and casts a glance back at Evan who’s still staring at Keith. Then the alpha pursed his lips and turned around to face Lance. Keith’s heart started hammering like crazy in fear of what Evan might do, suddenly emerged by the urge to retrieve the alpha’s attention on him and not Lance. So he slams down his palms on the table.

”Lance, stay out of it!” He shouted and sure, he may have sounded a bit too annoyed but he just really didn’t need the stress factor of keeping Lance safe as well. He deflates when he sees Evan’s shoulders shake with laughter.

”Yeah, _Lance,_ listen to the little omega and stay out of it, will you?” He mocks and starts moving towards Lance. Keith hears sirens go off in his head and he hurries out of his seat and Eliza’s grip on his arm. ”This is none of your business,” Evan manages to add just before Keith reaches his arm and pulls him back.

”Evan, _walk away_ ,” he says, this time trying to sound calm, even though he’s desperate for this altercation to just end. Both alphas seem very keen to disrupt Keith’s plans though.

”It’s a public place, you dumb fuck,” Lance responds and squares his shoulders. Keith groans in frustration inwardly. ”You fucking made it my business when you decided to harass other students in the middle of the cafeteria, _Evan_.” Then Lance takes a step closer and Keith immediately locks his eyes with Headband Guy who scrambles to keep Lance back, but to no avail. Despite Keith’s effort Evan kept walking until he reached Lance. The two alphas begin an intense stare down when they realize they’re about the same height, though Lance is clearly the skinnier of them. Keith curses under his breath, wondering what the fuck this skinny ass beanpole of an alpha thinks he will accomplish. Keith bets he doesn’t even know how to throw a punch.

He tries to shuffle his way in between the alphas and puts his hand flat on Lance’s chest and shoves, but Lance doesn’t budge, he doesn’t even look down at Keith and it bothers him.

”Seriously, Lance. I can handle it,” he pleads, allowing his voice to sound small, and his eyes to go big. Lance grits his teeth quickly and sighs.

”But that’s the thing though, isn’t it?” Lance says and when he looks down at Keith it’s not with pity in his eyes, no, it’s with sadness and solicitude, and with determination. Lance’s jaw tightens and his eyes continue past Keith and latches onto Evan again. ”This isn’t something that Keith should have to _handle_.”

”I think you’re stepping out of line, tough guy,” Evan starts, sounding particularly menacing. The hair on Keith’s neck stands up but he refuses to turn away from Lance, still pleading him with his bare eyes to walk away. ”Maybe you should reconsider what you’re saying and who you decide to pick fights with?” And with that Keith feels more than sees Evan’s arm reach around him and shove Lance’s shoulder harshly. Keith stumbles with Lance a step, grasping onto the alpha’s shirt to catch himself. Then Lance’s got both his hands on Keith upper arms and straightens them up.

”I don’t think _I’m_ the one picking fights, knothead,” Lance throws back and maneuvers Keith out of the way so fast Keith doesn’t even really recall how he suddenly stood placed halfway behind the alpha, protected by his broad shoulder. Keith glances up at Lance’s friend, Headband Guy, and he smiles reassuringly back at Keith. ”And you know, from here it kind of looks like you’re the one that’s out of line.” Lance gestures vaguely towards Keith and Headband Guy, but Eliza is also standing a few steps behind Keith, and several people at Lance’s table have also stood up from their seats, ready to intervene if anything happens. Evan seems to realize this too, going by the scowl that twists his features. Lance takes a calming breath and let’s his hands fall back to his sides, the one closest to Keith plants itself faintly on the omega’s hip to make sure he’s still standing behind him, ready to push him back if Keith decides to do something impulsive. ”I think you should just walk away, man. Seriously. Just walk away.”

Keith stares at Evan, at the complicated expression on his face that makes him look dangerous, and he knows what’s about to happen even before Evan starts raising his fist. He barely gets the time to grab a hold of Lance to pull him flush against his body and shout at Evan to stop before Shiro’s booming voice reverberates across the cafeteria.

”Is there a problem here?”

Keith doesn’t turn around to look at Shiro until he’s made sure Evan’s fist is far away from Lance’s face, and even then he still clenches his fingers onto Lance’s uniform until they spasm.

”Not at all, Mr. Shirogane!” Evan says with his dimples on display and charm turned on to maximum. Keith glances up at Shiro and meets his eyes directly. Shiro raises an eyebrow and Keith immediately drops his hands from Lance’s uniform and takes a step back from the alpha.

”It’s fine, Shiro,” he mumbles.

”No, it’s not _fine_ , Keith—” Lance exclaims frowning but Keith whips his head to him and tries to convey every reason why Lance needs to shut up right now only with one look. And Lance does shut up. They keep staring at each other even through the awkward silence after Lance’s interrupted sentence. Then Evan throws his arm around Lance’s shoulders, ending whatever just happened between Keith and Lance.

”Everything’s cool here, right Lance?” He says and shakes Lance’s shoulders. Lance keeps his eyes on Keith, the same serious expression on his face.

”Yeah,” Lance says, subdued. ”We’re cool.” Keith can’t read the alpha’s pheromones but he just knows that Lance is disappointed in him. Keith hunches in on his own shoulders and tries to will away the shameful blush that’s steadily rising on his cheeks. 

”Keith?” Shiro inquires again, not satisfied with whatever answers he’s gotten.

”Everything’s fine, Shiro,” Keith mumbles and looks intensively at the place where his hand had been clenching at the fabric of Lance’s shirt. He hears Shiro sigh after few beats, and he knows he’s off the hook for now at least.

”Well, then. Evan, can you come with me for a bit?” Shiro says and Evan reluctantly drags his arm off Lance, but doesn’t stalk away before smashing his shoulder into Lance’s. Lance doesn’t even flinch, all his attention is on Keith who refuses to meet his eyes. Lance bows his head to meet his gaze and puts a hand on his arm, loose enough so Keith easily can get out of the grip if he so wishes. The thoughtfulness of the alpha’s action finally gets Keith to look up.

”You sure you’re okay?” Lance asks, almost whispering. Keith shivers at his scent, the worry and care it emits, but he can also feel the calming pheromones Lance is sending his way. Keith knows it’s not any bad intentions behind it, maybe the alpha literally can’t help responding to Keith’s severely distressed pheromones with some calming ones of his own, but the very scent of them makes Keith’s whole body tense up.

”I don’t need you to save me, Lance,” Keith bites out with closed eyes. He can’t look Lance in the face right now, he’s too angry, too _ashamed_.

”I know,” Lance says slowly. ”But that doesn’t mean I was just going to sit here and listen without _doing_ anything—”

”I was handling it!” Keith can’t help the way he snaps at Lance, can’t help the way he wretches his arm away form Lance’s hand and sees the hurt in the alpha’s eyes. Keith knows he’s being a bit irrational but this whole situation could have been avoided if Lance hadn’t gotten involved. He also knows that maybe reacting like this is just a defense mechanism to hide the way Keith is super in love with Lance right now. How much he admires his courage and will to stand up for people even though he might get hurt from it. And Keith likes it so, so much that Lance defended him—but he cannot do this. He can’t feel like this anymore. So it’s easier to just shut it down before he let’s it sprout roots and grow even more.

Lance frowns and raises his palms into the air. Keith clenches his jaws together.

”Okay,” Lance says and his voice is so cold. ”Okay. Sorry for caring, Keith.”

Lance back away from Keith and the omega can see the finality in his move, so with his resolve breaking he turns around abruptly and hurries out of the cafeteria.

He breathes heavily, determined to breathe through the urge to cry. He refuses.

”Keith!” Eliza shouts behind him. Keith slows down but keeps walking until he’s far away enough from the cafeteria to not bump into any students. ”Wait up!”

Keith glances back at her approaching figure, takes a last deep breath and promises himself that he won’t cry, and then he stops. Eliza jogs up to him the last bit and bends forward, hands on her knees and wheezes dramatically.

”God, Keith. You’re too fast,” she huffs and peers up at him. Keith gives her a weak smile that she sees through immediately. Straightening up she furrows her eyebrows and looks at him properly.

”Oh, Keith,” she says in that caring, warm voice of hers and Keith breaks. He hates how much he’s been crying lately and he hates that Eliza gets to see it, but the tears bursts out relentlessly and he hides his face behind his hands, trying to suffocate the sobs. He feels Eliza’s hands carefully sneaking over his shoulders and then he’s suddenly immersed into her embrace.

”Talk to me, please. What’s wrong, Keith? What’s going on? Why where Evan even talking to you?” She rambles softly, and normally Keith would have felt like he’s drowning in the questions, but when it’s Eliza he can feel that she won’t pressure him to answer any one of them if he doesn’t want to, this is just her way of showing affection, and release some anxiety of her own. But Keith feels like he’s flooding over with pent up emotions, so he doesn’t even think about it before he opens his mouth.

”I don’t know, okay,” he says and tries to stifle an ugly sob. ”I don’t know why Evan does what he does, or why _me_ , but he just likes fucking with me, I don’t _know_ why, and _Lance—_ ” Keith rambles back because he’s frustrated and angry and confused and honestly, he’s so tired of alphas in general. ”I don’t know what the fuck Lance thinks he’s doing because he likes Sebastian and apparently he likes to fuck with me too, and—and,” Keith sobs, ”every omega _hates_ me now, okay, I’m—I— _fuck_.” Keith buries his face into Eliza’s neck and breathes in her soothing scent. It’s very flowery and sweet, even when she’s pumping out distressed and sad pheromones that usually scents so bitter and sour, she still manages to stay sweet.

”No, Keith, don’t say that,” she urges and threads her fingers through his hair. ”I don’t know a single omega who hates you—or well, fine, Sebastian is a good contender, but I’m sure he doesn’t _hate_ you—why would you even say that?”

Keith sniffs and keeps his face hidden in the crook of her neck when he answers.

”I know you’re just trying to protect me—I know you’ve defended me from a lot of omegas.”

”What? No! No, Keith, that’s not it at all, Jesus Christ. They’re all worried about you, about Sebastian _and_ you, they just want to make sure everything is fine—no one hates you, I promise.” She urges him to look up at her but Keith refuses to remove his face from her neck. ”Keith look at me—look at me,” she pushes him away from her but keeps her hands firmly on his shoulders and looks him intensively in the eyes. Keith feels like a deer caught in headlights. ”I promise you. No one hates you, and we can deal with Evan, okay? You, me, Adam, Shiro and Ms. Arreola—and, uh, Lance I suppose—we’ll all make sure Evan stays the fuck away from you.” Here she hugs Keith close again. ”You have people who cares about you dummy,” she says with such tangible affection Keith can smell it in her scent. ”You are not alone.”

 _You are not alone_. Her words echoes inside his head, and he would like so desperately to believe them, he really does, but it’s so fucking difficult. Because if Keith knows anything, it is that people are excellent at leaving Keith alone. First his mom—he can’t remember her, can’t even recall her face, only a vaguely familiar lullaby that he’s never sung out loud to anyone—and then his dad, and that one hurts even more because his dad even knew Keith— _raised_ him—and still he just… left. Then there’s the hundreds of people he’s met through foster care, foster parents, other kids in the homes, the classmates and the few friends he managed to get through all the moving around. Every single ’ _we’ll keep in touch_ ’ that Keith knows never meant shit to anyone but him. The only constant in Keith’s life right now is The Garrison, Mr. Arreola, Lance, Adam—and Shiro. But Keith’s only known Shiro for a bit over two years, he still doesn’t really trust that he will actually stay. _You are not alone anymore,_ Keith recalls Shiro saying to him one of the first weeks his freshman year after he’d defended Keith to Iverson after a nasty fight with another cadet. _You are not alone anymore, Keith._ Keith didn’t believe him then, and he’s not sure he believes him fully now either, but Shiro hasn’t left yet, and he stayed even before they were forced to spend time with each other as student and teacher here at the Garrison, and he invited Keith into his family. That must count for something, right? And Keith thinks about Adam that haven’t always been a perfect friend (or gentleman) but always stood up for Keith if anyone was particularly nasty, and especially now that Keith’s presented as omega and have had all these issues with other alphas. Adam has really stepped up and proven to be a friend Keith can count on, even though it’s been pretty weird lately with the omega stuff and alpha stuff and— and _Lance_ … Lance who’ve butted heads with Keith since the very first day. Lance who never gave up and kept bothering Keith until the omega was too God damn annoyed to not answer the alpha. Lance who kept bothering Keith until he suddenly wasn’t a bother anymore, just a thing Keith took for granted in his daily routine. Keith doesn’t even want to think about what would happen to him if Lance would just give up on him. He’s been too close to that feeling and he never wants to experience it ever again. He really should talk to Ms. Arreola about that part of the bond. 

Keith flicks his eyes between Eliza’s big, brown ones. He thinks of Ms. Arreola and how much she’s helped him just by introducing him to Eliza. Eliza, who’ve only been in his life for a few weeks, who has proven again and again that she cares about Keith and wants to be around him. Proven to him that the world isn’t against him.

”I’m an asshole,” Keith says and slumps a bit in Eliza’s grip. A bubbly laughter slips through her lips and Keith is at least glad she’s sounding a bit more like herself.

”Yeah,” she sighs, and she sounds happy that he seems okay too. ”But you’re cool.”

”Oh,” Keith says. ”Okay. _Cool_.”


	5. Love Sick

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay I'm in a hurry to my job right now so I'll probably update these notes again later today, but holy shit shiro is confirmed gay!!!!! I have been waiting for this!!!! So Adam is now officially part of this au, just don't confuse him with Keith's Adam lmao
> 
> see ya soon and enjoy reading!
> 
> Update: helloooo I've edited some things in this chapter that were just not that great lmao, only details and small mistakes though so don't worry if you read this a few hours ago. Thank you so much for reading!

Shiro sat in silence at Keith’s desk. Keith sat on his bed, also refusing to talk. They had been sitting like this for about five minutes now, both too stubborn to be the first person to break the silence. Keith even met Shiro’s pointed gaze in pure spite to show him that he wasn’t afraid. This time Shiro sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

”You are by far the most immature person I’ve ever met,” he said. Keith snorted and pulled up his knees to his chest.

”That’s not very pedagogical of you,” he says. Shiro groaned and looked over at Keith across the dorm.

”I’m not here as an educator. I’m here as your friend and _brother_ ,” Shiro said, dropping his hand from his face. Keith glanced up at him, taking in the dark circles under his eyes, the fine wrinkles framing his frowning mouth and the way it all made him look even older than he should be. Keith shrunk into his shoulders and felt a little guilty, because he knew he was part of the reason why Shiro looked like this. He also knew Shiro had a fight with his boyfriend. Although Shiro hasn’t told him what the fight was about it’s not hard to guess that Keith was a valid issue for a fight. Keith wished he wasn’t such a burden for Shiro, but he didn’t know how not to be.

”Then what do you want?” Keith asked and finally broke the eye contact by looking down on his knees, feeling sheepish all of a sudden.

”I want you to tell me what’s going on,” Shiro demanded, but not in a way that made Keith feel as if he had to answer. Only Shiro knew how to be demanding but, like, _gently._

”Nothing is going on,” Keith lied, because Shiro demanded it gently, and that was equally his advantage as it was a disadvantage.

”Keith, something is going on,” Shiro said even softer, leaning forwards with his elbows on his knees, and that was just unfair because now Keith doesn’t even _want_ to lie to him.

”I don’t see why this is something you have to know,” Keith said at last, after a few seconds of pure stubborn silence. Shiro raised an eyebrow.

”I _care_ , therefore I want to know about what’s going on in your life. You’ve been avoiding me after what happened earlier this week,” Shiro said and furrowed his eyebrows in a way that caused Keith too feel even more guilty. ”So please, just make this easier on both of us and tell me what’s going on.”

Shiro slumped his shoulders in dejection and that one wrinkle appeared between his eyebrows. Keith felt the fight pour out of him.

”I don’t know what to tell you,” he began, and it was the honest truth. ”Evan is just being an asshole, as usual. Lance is being an asshole as usual but not the _same_ kind of asshole as usual. I’m fine though,” he said quietly and sunk further down in his bed. ”I can handle it.”

”I thought Evan wasn’t allowed to talk to you,” Shiro said, wrinkle growing deeper.

”Yeah, he wasn’t in the summer, but now I guess he’s free to do whatever. No one’s said anything.”

”Ms. Arreola didn’t say anything?” Shiro asked.

”No... or I mean, she just told me to go straight to her if anyone was harassing me.”

”Has he?” Shiro demanded softly again. ”Harassing you, I mean? Has he tried scenting you again?”

Keith looked at Shiro and straightened up in his bed.

”No,” he urged. ”No, nothing like that. I promise, it’s not like back in the summer. I can handle this—I _promise_.” And Keith really needed Shiro to believe him, because he refused to go through the same thing again as last summer. He _needed_ this from Shiro. The alpha deflated in his chair.

”You can’t keep seeing him.” Shiro looked as if he hadn’t slept since school started. Keith bristled at this.

”I’m not. It’s not like I’m inviting him over, Jesus Christ.”

”No, I'm sorry, I didn’t mean it like that… I just don’t want him anywhere near you,” Shiro mumbled and glanced away from Keith, the first time he wouldn’t meet his eyes during this whole conversation.

”It’s fine,” Keith mumbled back. Shiro only sighed again and closed his eyes for a few seconds. Then he seemed to regain his senses and looked back at Keith with a small grin.

”So,” he began with a particular glint in the eye that had dread collect in Keith’s stomach. ”Lance was really brave, huh?”

Keith groaned and fell back onto his bed, an arm thrown over his eyes.

”What?” Shiro asked dumbly. ”He seemed pretty defensive over you. I wonder why that would be?”

Keith pinched his eyes together so hard he could see shapes and colors in the darkness behind his eyelids. He could understand why Shiro would tease him about this, but Shiro didn’t know about the Sebastian thing, _or_ the bond thing. Keith really didn’t want to talk about this.

”Stop talking,” he said, muffled behind his arm.

”I’m just saying,” Shiro said and Keith could imagine the defensive way he would raise his palms into the air.

”Just knock it off, Shiro. Lance likes someone else.”

Just getting those words out of his throat seemed to drain all the power Keith had left in him. He felt a little as if he wanted to cry, but he refused to do this when Shiro was still here.

” _What?_ ”

The sharp way Shiro said it had Keith removing his arm from his eyes and glance back at him. Shiro looked at Keith as if he was speaking in Russian or something.

”What?” Keith echoed. Shiro tilted his head in confusion.

”Why did you say he likes someone else?”

Now it was Keith’s turn to be confused, although it didn't stop a coldness to spread across his chest at the turn of topic.

”Because he…” Keith clenches his jaws and forces the words out of his mouth. ”Because he does.”

”No, I think you’re wrong,” Shiro says, sure of himself as he leans back and crosses his arms over his chest. Keith scrambled up in a sitting position.

”You can’t just decide what other people are feeling,” he insists, not only to defend Lance’s ability to control his own feelings, but also to kill any sense of hope that could start growing inside his heart by Shiro’s conviction. He doesn’t understand why Shiro is doing this to him—why he’s bringing this up now when it hurts so much for Keith to talk about.

”That is not what I’m doing at all. Lance likes you, it’s pretty obvious.”

Keith gapes at the alpha.

”Don’t say that,” he whispers. Then the cold, numb feeling in his chest starts heating up and the telltale signs of anger flares inside of him. ”Don’t fucking lie to me. You can’t _say_ that—you have no idea!”

Shiro opens his mouth to answer and gets up from the chair in alarm.

”No! Get out! You can’t say shit like that, Shiro—you don’t know the whole story.”

”Keith,” Shiro murmurs and gets up on the bed to collect Keith in his arms. Keith hadn’t even realized he was hyperventilating until Shiro hushed him softly in the ear, telling him to breathe and listen to Shiro’s own breaths.

”You can’t say that—Shiro, you _can’t_ ,” Keith manages through heaving breaths. Shiro agrees instantly, slowly swaying them both back and forth, keeping Keith cradled to his chest. They sit like that for a long while and after, when Keith’s finally stopped crying and feels as if he could fall asleep in Shiro’s arms, the alpha caresses his head softly and speaks.

”Keith, what’s going on?” His voice is calm, careful. But Keith knows what a worried Shiro sounds like. ”This… this isn’t a normal reaction. Not for you. I need to know what’s going on.”

Keith is too tired to care anymore about keeping this from Shiro. It feels good being cared for like this.

”He’s my alpha,” he mumbles and snuggles closer into Shiro’s neck. ”Lance is my mate.”

Shiro had the good graces of not revealing his reaction to Keith’s admission outwards. Although he stays silent for a long moment, almost long enough for Keith to fall asleep.

”Why are you upset?” He only asks in the end. Keith yawns and really doesn’t want to acknowledge the question. Why does Shiro want to keep talking about this? Keith is warm and safe here, he shouldn’t have to think about this anymore. But Shiro nudges him and asks again. ”Keith? Why are you so upset?”

Keith groans and hides his face from Shiro’s peering gaze.

”I’m not Lance’s omega,” he whispers, silent enough to make Shiro think twice about what he just heard. When it finally sinks in, he can only bring his arms tighter around the omega, hug him closer and whisper comforting words until Keith falls asleep.

Shiro’s comforting presence is still there when Keith wakes up the next day.

 

-

 

”... and then Lance ripped his shirt off and started hitting his chest and howling like a skinnier version of Tarzan in the middle of flight practice,” Adam said. Keith whipped his head towards Adam, who was laying down on Keith’s bed with his legs dangling over the edge, at the sound of Lance's name.

”What the _fuck_?” He exclaimed. Adam glanced over at him and frowned.

”Oh, so _now_ you start listening to me,” he huffs and sits up to glare properly at Keith. Keith can feel his cheeks heat up but he refuses to show his embarrassment to Adam. The alpha doesn’t seem to care though, he only sighs and looks away from Keith, falling backwards down on the bed again.

”Whatever,” he mumbles, arms crossed over his chest, now glaring up at Keith’s ceiling again. Keith feels guilty about not listening to Adam, it’s just he was really busy stressing about his schoolwork piling up on his desk, and also Lance. He just couldn’t seem to get Lance out of his thoughts. Keith sighs and gets up from his chair. He really should start paying attention to his friends if he wants to keep them.

”Adam,” he says and stops by the edge of his bed, looking down at the alpha. Adam pouts and refuses to meet his eyes. ”Adam, I’m sorry,” Keith says after a moment of them both being stubborn idiots. Adam still doesn’t respond. Keith sighs even louder in annoyance and crawls up on the bed. This apparently got Adam’s attention, his eyes immediately snapping towards Keith. Keith inches closer to the alpha and lays down next to him on his side.

”I’m _sorry_ , okay?” Keith insists and furrows his eyebrows. Adam averts his gaze again and closes his eyes. Then he groans loudly and throws an arm across his face.

”It’s so unfair,” he exhales. Keith furrows his eyebrows even more, especially at the confusing pheromones clouding them.

” _What_ is unfair?” He asks. Adam shakes his head. Keith grabs his hand and pulls it away from his face, putting a stop to the thrashing back and forth. ”I’m listening Adam. What’s unfair?”

Adam only looks at Keith, but his eyes keeps flickering all over Keith’s face. He feels like blushing again at the close scrutiny. Adam opened his mouth as if to say something, but then he closes it again.

”What is it?” Keith whispers, because suddenly the atmosphere in the room made him feel as if anything louder than a whisper would be rude. Adam closes his eyes for a moment and opens them again with a smirk on his lips.

”It’s unfair how good at flying you were today,” he says loudly, totally wrecking the atmosphere Keith was so careful of preserving. Both of Keith's eyebrows shoot up at the sudden compliment. ”Honestly, I don’t get it. I worked on making that maneuver you did today for weeks and haven’t even gotten close to mastering it. How the fuck did you do it?” Adam continues.

”I just followed the instructions,” Keith answered dumbfounded, after a few seconds of just staring at the alpha. He smelled just like normal all of a sudden, the weird atmosphere is completely gone and Keith feels as of someone has pulled a carpet form beneath his feet. ”But that’s not what you were about to say.”

Adam drops his smirk and stares at Keith. Remembering his hold on Adam’s wrist he grips it tighter to show him that he can’t get rid of the omega that easy.

”What’s going on with you?” Keith continues, speaking softly. He just wants Adam to confide in him. He wants to be there for him. He wants to show him that Keith isn’t just a burden—he can also be a shoulder to cry on, if Adam ever needs one. ”Is it… do you have a crush on someone?” Keith guesses tentatively. It’s something Keith’s been wondering actually. He’s just noticed that Adam usually gets like this whenever Keith’s problems with Lance are brought up. Maybe he’s feeling as if Keith and Eliza wouldn’t listen to his problems? Maybe he feels as if they don’t care? That’s just wrong. Keith cares a lot. He would show Adam how much if he only spoke to him about whatever is troubling him.

Adam gasps at his guess, recoiling from their close positions on the bed.

” _No_ ,” Adam shuts down the question immediately. ”No, that’s not it.”

Keith raises an eyebrow in doubt. Adam sits up and snorts.

”Stop that. I’m not in love with anyone,” the alpha says. Keith sits up right next to him, squirming in the awkwardness.

”I never said anything about being in love,” he points out. Adam freezes. Fists buried in the blankets, knuckles white. Keith leans closer, touching his hand lightly.

”Are you?” Keith asks quietly. Adam looks at him. Keith can smell his embarrassment and distress in the air, but he hopes it will all go away once Adam just _tells_ him what’s going on. Keith tries to make himself smell as warm and welcoming as possible to ease the tension for the alpha. Keith wants to be a safe person for Adam to come to. Especially since Keith knows what kind of alphas he hangs around with—and Adam is nothing at all like them. Keith could be that friend to help him with whatever is going without any judgement. Keith tilts his head and tries to smile reassuringly. ”Are you in love with someone?”

Adam looks like he’s going to break, or puke, almost quivering where he sits right next to Keith. This isn’t at all how Keith though he would react, suddenly feeling more worried than originally.

” _Adam_ ,” he says and takes a stronger grip of the alpha’s hand, and Adam opens his mouth to respond.

” _Keith_!”

They both whip their heads around to face Keith’s door being thrown open and the vision of a gasping Eliza leaning against the frame.

”What?” Keith asks promptly.

”It’s Lance—” she begins and Keith is already up from the bed, approaching her.

”What about Lance?” He urges. Eliza raises a finger and tries to catch her breath before speaking again. How long had she been running? He glances back towards Adam in question to see if he had a clue what was going on, but his face was completely blank, not even meeting Keith’s eyes. Keith frowns and looks back at Eliza.

”He’s in a fight, I—I didn’t see it but some people said it was with some junior alpha. I don’t know who.”

A sudden surge in Keith’s chest had him running. He could hear both Eliza and Adam scream his name behind him, and their footsteps as they set off after him. But Keith was fast and soon their noise faded away in the distance.

Keith realized he had no idea where he was going, but the closer he got to the part of campus where he knew Lance’s dorm was located, the crowd of students thickened, and Keith could hear the gossip all around him. Then he was turning a last corner and walked right into a ring of students, all watching something in front of them. Keith pushes forwards, forcing his way through the crowded hallway, and then he’s hit with the image of Lance pushing up a familiar alpha into the lockers. Keith doesn’t give himself the time to think about it before he reacts.

” _Lance!_ What the fuck are you doing!” He shouts and pulls at Lance’s arms, preventing him from doing something that surely would get him expelled. The other alpha immediately sinks to the floor as the force of Lance’s grip disappears. But Lance isn’t looking at Keith.

” _Don’t go near him_ ,” he says and Keith shivers at the dangerous tone of his voice. Did Lance just alpha command the other alpha? Keith frowns and pulls weakly on Lance’s arm to get his attention.

”Don’t go near who?” Keith asks in confusion. ”Lance? People were saying you were _fighting!_ ” Keith tries to scan Lance’s body for injuries, hands patting down his clothes as he goes. When the alpha doesn’t flinch anywhere at his touch he looks back up, Lance is finally looking back at him. ”Are you hurt anywhere?” He asks urgently and puts a hand on Lance’s cheek, turning his face towards him to see if he’s hurt. Lance looks as if his eyeballs are going to fall out of his face.

”No,” he murmurs. ”No, I’m fi—”

Then suddenly Lance’s face gets knocked out of Keith’s grip. Keith only has the time to gasp and grab a hold of Lance’s shirt before he whips around to see the other alpha prepare for another punch. Keith immediately takes a steady grip on the alpha’s fist and on his arm, twisting it painfully. In those few seconds Keith realizes this is the same junior alpha that approached him in physics class all those weeks ago. With renewed fury Keith pushed the alpha backwards hard enough for him to knock into the lockers and then fall to his ass on the floor.

”Fucking dumbass,” Keith huffed and turned his attention back on Lance. Lance was staring at him as if he’s never seen anything like Keith before, a hand pressed to his eyebrow. It made Keith’s blood boil even more. ” _You._ I’m not done with you either.”

Keith glances around him and sees all the students eyes on them, including Eliza and Adam’s, and decides to just remove Lance and himself completely from this scene. With a grip on Lance’s hand he starts pulling the alpha through the crowd. He knows only one place that is guarantied to leave them alone for a while.

He steers them to the kitchen, where he sneaks in with a quick glance to make sure no kitchen staff is walking around the backdoor. He snatches a towel and some ice from the freezer and presses it gently onto Lances forehead, and then he’s off again, hand in a tight grip around Lance’s.

He hurries through the corridors and takes the familiar path to his favorite place—the rooftop.

Only when they both have a foot up on the roof does he breathe out. He keeps pulling Lance after him though, all the way to the edge on the other side where the sun is turning orange in preparation for the dive beneath the horizon.

Lance climbs over the railing and sits down, facing the sunset. Keith gasps silently at the sight of Lance in the soft light, and turns away to sit in the opposite way, staring down at his hands. He doesn’t want the alpha to see his face. He’s sure he looks just as dopy as he feels.

They sit like that for a while, and Keith tried to just enjoy the silence, but he can’t stop worrying about Lance’s head. Was he hurt badly? Should he have dragged him to the infirmary instead? Why was Lance in a fight with Charlie? Keith can’t recall ever seeing them hanging out in the same loops before. Was it… was it because of him? Keith remembers that he’d hinted at Lance being his alpha back then when Charlie and Cal came up to him in the classroom. What if he was the reason Lance was hit?

Keith twists his fingers in anguish at the thought.

“So, did you force me up all of those stairs for a reason, or…”

Keith looks up at Lance immediately. The alpha is turned towards him as well, still pressing that stupid towel to his head and Keith berates himself for just having him sit there in pain. What kind of worthless omega is he supposed to be?

“Lemme see.” Keith reaches for the towel and scoots closer. He removes the towel from Lance’s eyebrow and winces at the tiny cut and blood trail just above the fine hairs. Lance goes rigid suddenly and shuts his eyes. With a glance down at the alpha’s face Keith pokes around the cut to see if it has stopped bleeding, but Lance flinches so badly Keith removes both his hands from his face.

“ _Ow_ , Jesus Christ!” Lance hisses. Keith looks down at his eyes and is met with a glare and an adorable pout.

“Don’t be a baby,” Keith responds accompanied with his own glare. They stay staring like that for a few seconds until Keith feels the urge to check out the cut is bigger than winning some stupid glaring contest. This time however, Lance keeps looking at him as the omega takes a piece of ice to clean the blood away, and then as Keith tries to dry away the mess with the towel, _carefully_ this time, Lance suddenly appear to be closer than before. He is definitely leaning against Keith’s hold on his face. Is he about to faint? Is he in so much pain he can’t even sit up straight? Keith can only smell contentment on the alpha, no pain pheromones.

Keith furrows his eyebrows at the alpha’s strange behavior and pokes him right by the cut, because it really isn’t _that_ big, intentionally this time. Then he clears his throat and leans away a bit.

“You’ve got a cut over your eyebrow,” he says matter of factly. He gives back the towel to Lance and makes sure he covers his eyebrow with it again. The cut might not be big but Keith has no idea if it’ll still swell up. “But it’s super tiny, I promise. You won’t even get a cool scar.”

“That sucks,” Lance chuckles. “I really wanted one.”

Keith stares at the alpha’s profile, the way his shoulders shake slightly as he laughs. Honestly Keith is just happy Lance isn’t in terrible pain right now. Keith is not a nurse or a doctor, he has no idea what a fist to the face can do as damage. Maybe he really should have taken him to the infirmary? But… Lance seems fine now? And the more selfish part of Keith really doesn’t want Lance to leave now. They’re finally alone— _together_ —just the two of them, and they’re not fighting.

He squirms at the thought. He needs to stop thinking like that. A good omega would have made sure their alpha was healthy and not in pain. The most logical step would have been to get him checked out by a school nurse. And then leave, because Lance _isn’t_ his alpha and he’s got no right to keep him up here for himself. Fuck. He can’t do anything right. He bets he’s even the reason why Lance was hit in the first place—why else would a junior alpha like Charlie approach Lance?

“Just yell at me already,” Lance says suddenly. Keith jumps a little but hides it by turning towards the alpha again. Lance doesn’t look at him, but leans back on his hands and watches the sunset. “Why drag it out?” The alpha sighs, all blasé about it, as if this is just something that need to be done. As if it doesn’t even matter that he got hit in the face today.

“What the fuck was that fight about?” Keith asks sharply, eyebrows furrowed. Lance doesn’t answer immediately to Keith’s displeasure, and wrinkles his nose all cutesy.

“Uh, you know,” he stalls. “He was just being an asshole and I kind of lost it.”

Well, yeah. Keith noticed that. But it doesn’t really answer his question.

“No, I think there’s more you’re not telling me.” Keith angles his body completely towards the alpha, and Lance drops the towel from his eyebrow to face him. “You alpha commanded him, Lance. You alpha commanded an _alpha,_ ” Keith continues. He really needs Lance to understand the gravity of the situation. Lance only sighs.

“Okay, look. I know you’ll get mad or whatever about this, _but_ ,” Lance urges when Keith opens his mouth to protest. Keith bristles but back down. Lance gives him a slightly berating look before continuing, suddenly in a softer voice. “You must know that I would have done this for anyone. For any omega, beta or alpha. No one deserves to be treated like that.”

Keith relaxes and slumps down on himself. So the fight was about Lance defending someone? Keith could see that. Lance has got that reckless nerve where he has no problem inserting himself in any situation to defend anyone.

“Basically,” Lance continues and his eyes flickers away from Keith’s for a second, “the guy came up to me and asked if I was up to sharing you or whatever.” The alpha mumbled it quickly, almost quickly enough for Keith not to make out the words. But he heard it.

“Sharing me?” He blurts in confusion. He feels a swirl of emotion surge through him. So the fight was about Keith after all? It _is_ his fault Lance got hit in the face?

Lance cringes next to him.

“Uh, you know,” Lance mumbles again, but Keith _doesn’t_ know. That’s why he asked. “As in… in a sexual way.” The alpha coughs at that and completely averts his eyes from Keith’s.

Keith is blushing. He feels as if Lance could get burned if he touched his cheek. Keith feels deeply ashamed that Lance had to hear that about him, that the day would ever come where Lance had to defend him from it. Because obviously it made Lance very uncomfortable.

“Oh,” Keith answers simply. He hunches in on himself and plays with a loose thread on the bottom of his shirt to avoid ever looking at Lance again.

“He’s an asshole Keith.”

Keith feels the gentle pheromones from Lance even before he registers the words.

“Don’t listen to what he says,” Lance tries again, leaning closer but Keith still can’t bring himself to look up into his eyes, so he only nods. They sit in silence for a few seconds. A few much needed seconds for Keith to bask in the comforting pheromones from his alpha and collect himself. Lance is too kind to him. Too good. He doesn’t really understand why he’s being this good to him when he really has no responsibility whatsoever to make sure Keith is fine. Maybe he feels guilty about it? But Keith can’t see why. It was probably Charlie who approached Lance in the first place. It was Charlie who asked the atrocious question. He just doesn’t understand _why_. Why after all these weeks did Charlie feel the need to bother Lance about Keith? Charlie didn’t believe Keith that Lance was his alpha back then, and he certainly wouldn’t believe it now after the whole Sebastian thing. It doesn’t make any sense.

“Why was he asking you?” Keith asked, breaking the silence that had fell upon them.

“What?” Lance breathed. Keith looked up at him, his lips in a firm line.

“Why was he asking _you_ if you wanted to _share_ me?”

Lance looked at him like a deer caught in headlights. A blush slowly crept over this cheeks, and the flustered pheromones couldn’t escape them both.

“Oh, uh… I mean,” he stammers, clearing his throat, “I don’t really know. He just thought you were my omega, I guess.”

 _He thought you were my omega_. The words coming from Lance’s mouth caused a shiver down Keith’s spine. He can’t help but preen a little. He still doesn’t really understand Charlie’s motives, but he doesn’t think Lance is lying to him. And that suppressed, selfish part of Keith feels absolutely giddy with the implication of other’s thinking they are together. That Lance is his alpha. But the way Lance raises his eyebrows in question makes him collect all those feelings and shove them away for the time being.

“He thought you were my alpha,” he shoots back, only to see how Lance would react. Lance doesn’t even say anything, only nods. But his pheromones becomes flustered again, and Keith really wants to take that as a good sign. “Hmm,” Keith said, prodding Lance into saying something. But lance only keeps his eyes on the sunset, and Keith gives up trying to get the alpha to talk.

They both let it go for a while, simply enjoying the moment, when Lance’s phone completely ruins it with the loud ringing noise. Lance scrambles to answer, and Keith is momentarily afraid he’ll fall of the roof edge, but then he manages to get his phone out of his pants and answer.

“Hunk, buddy,” Lance says after a voice speaks loudly into the phone. It must be Headband Guy, Keith thinks. “Calm down, I’m fine. I’m up on the ro—“

Keith immediately shoves his hand over Lance’s mouth and shakes his head. It was a pure impulse. He just really doesn’t want anyone to know about the roof that doesn’t have to. It felt nice sharing this place with Lance and it really would break him if Lance started sharing it with other people. Lance seemed to understand this though and nodded.

“I’m fine! I’m fine,” Lance continued the reassuring when Keith removed his hand. Keith stopped listening after that, only waiting for the call to end.

When it did, it did so abruptly, causing Lance to look at his phone in bewilderment.

“What?” Keith said, peering over at the alpha. Lance whipped his head towards him.

“Seems like everyone thinks you’re my omega,” he huffs and smiles soflty. A smile that Keith never would have thought would accompany a sentence like that. Keith blushes again, a blush very different form the shameful one from before. Lance seems to realize what he just said as his chin drops.

“Uh, _anyway_ ,” he says urgently. Face probably just as red as Keith’s. But then he scrambles away from the roof edge and Keith’s heart beats too fast. Way too fast. Is he leaving? “I need to leave, and go, and I really need to go—so I’ll see you around.” Then Lance basically flees and disappears down the stairs. 

Keith doesn’t move. He doesn’t think he can move. He’s not sure what just happened, but something warm is coiling in his chest and it feels… good? Yeah. He’s pretty sure what just happened on the roof was _good_. Keith buries his face in his knees and squeals like some kind of love sick person.

Oh my god.


	6. Kerberos Mission

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second draft of this chapter because I hated the first one, and I still kinda hate this one but I hate it less than the one before so I guess it'll have to do. I'm gonna edit and clean it up later when I have the time.  
> Anyway, I'm just gonna drop this chapter here now and pretend I wasn't gone for two and a half months

_Seems like everyone thinks you’re my omega._

Keith sighs absentmindedly and leans heavily onto his palm, looking out the window of their classroom. The sentence has been repeating in his head like a scratchy cd player for the entirety of this class.

 _Seems like_ everyone _thinks you’re_ my _omega._

Why did Lance say it like that? He didn’t sound annoyed or uncomfortable at all. Actually, he sounded… fond? Happy? Keith doesn’t know, but he can’t help but smile every time he thinks about the alpha’s stupid face. Maybe Lance never liked Sebastian that much. He doesn’t seem that sad about it anymore at least, not if you go by the way Lance blushes when he’s caught staring at Keith, or by the flustered pheromones he keeps releasing when Keith lets his fingers caress the alpha as they pass each other in the corridors. If anything, Keith is more hopeful than ever before, which is dangerous since he’s actually still not sure about _anything_. Lance still hasn’t shown any real interest, hasn’t really reciprocated the flirting, but he’s at least not pushing Keith away either. So he keeps doing it. Whenever he sees Lance coming from the opposite direction in the corridor he makes sure to walk up right next to him, his fingers trailing up the alpha’s arm and grazing the neck of his shirt before they pass each other. He can practically feel Lance’s shivers as their skin touch.

“ _Keith_.”

Keith whips his head around and meets Adam’s closed off eyes. He frowns at the way the alpha looks at him. Adam’s been really weird and cold lately and Keith’s not sure what he did to deserve the treatment. He’s pretty sure it’s got to do with the conversation they had a few days ago about Adam’s crush, but Keith doesn’t get what he said wrong. He only wanted to help, and it’s not like he got any information out of Adam anyway, so there’s no harm done really. He’s just being a dick.

“What?” he hissed back, probably a bit too fiercely. He’s just so tired of Adam being pissed at him for no reason. Adam sneers.

“You’re stinking up the place with your fucking scent. No one wants to smell that,” the alpha says and whips his head back to the teacher. Keith keeps his gaze on Adam’s face, trying to read what’s really going on. He can’t say the words didn’t hurt. They do. It’s not exactly proper for anyone to talk about anyone’s scent like that, and it’s especially hurtful since Adam’s an alpha and Keith’s an omega—his scent is supposed to smell _good_ for alphas—so Keith tries to reel it in the best he can, but he doesn’t understand what exactly was so off-putting about his scent. He’s pretty happy and content right now, and that should reflect in his pheromones, and Adam has never complained about his scent before… not that they’ve ever discussed it. Keith frowns but decides it’s not worth fighting in class for.

He was just about to start focusing on what their teacher was talking about when she finally dismissed them. Chairs scraping across the floor and general student chatter fills the previous concentrated silence as everyone gathers their stuff to leave. Great, Keith just daydreamed an entire lecture away.

Adam doesn’t even hesitate before leaving Keith alone at their shared table.

 _Fine_ , Keith thinks, be like that then _._

He scrambles his shit together and gets up to walk out of the classroom. Keith really tries not to look for Adam in the hallway outside, but he finds his eyes stick to the back of the alpha’s head anyway. Adam turns and glances back at him, but turns just a quickly when he realized Keith was staring back.

Keith doesn’t like the feeling this brings him. He really doesn’t understand why Adam would be avoiding him like this, acting as if Keith’s insulted his entire family tree or something. Something is up, and he can’t for the life of his figure out _what_.

A whiff of salty beach water floats past Keith, and he involuntarily inhales a deep breath. He whips his head around and spots Lance walking the opposite way from Adam and Keith immediately decides that his next class can wait a few minutes as he pursues his alpha. Lance is walking next to his friends, headband guy and the short one, and talks as if he doesn’t have to breathe between sentences. Keith tries to quell down his smile but seeing Lance is like a fresh breath of air after suffering through all the weird tension with Adam.

Keith hurries after the trio and even before he gets to call for their attention he sees Lance’s shoulder stiffen and almost walks right into his back when the alpha decides to stop abruptly.

A rather unflattering grunt escapes Keith’s lips. “Jesus Christ,” he mumbles shortly after and rubs his nose that got shoved into Lances (admittedly _firm_ ) back muscles. The alpha in question turns around swiftly and raises his hands to hover over Keith’s arms, as if he’s afraid Keith’s just going to fall over or something.

“Oh my God, are you okay?” Lance stresses and flushes prettily. “Fuck, I’m sorry—I wasn’t, I mean—I didn’t _mean_ to—“

Keith glares at him, because that _actually_ hurt, and also Lance looks fucking adorable blushing like this.

“Smooth,” Lance’s short friend comments. Keith glances over at them, sees their deadpan expression and cracks up in a small snicker.

“Hey!” Lance cries out and automatically shuffles Keith behind his shoulder again, as if protecting him from his friends dry humor. “Can you, like, get lost?” Lance asks and stares down on his friend who looks about as impressed as you would imagine.

“Uh, I didn’t mean to interrupt or anything,” Keith speaks up when he realized the three of them probably were going somewhere. Jesus, he can’t just hog Lance from his friends. Lance turns to look at him and frowns.

“No, no no no, you’re not interrupting! Not at all!” He assures. Keith tilts his head to look up at Lance unsurely.

“Well, _actually_ , you kind of were—“ the small one started until headband guy shoved his hand over their mouth, effectively shutting them up.

“Lance is right!” Headband guy says enthusiastically and keeps the short one in a headlock beneath his arm. “You’re not interrupting at all. Not one bit! Uh, Keith? Right? I’m Hunk, by the way. This is Pidge and we’re gonna go now, so you two just, uh, don’t be late to class?”

Keith can only nod, slightly confused, but equally as charmed by them. He catches the weird look Hunk gives Lance before he gets going, Pidge getting dragged with him.

“Uh,” Keith says eloquently after they’ve gone and glances back at Lance. The alpha’s got his face buried in one of his hands, the other perched on his hip.

“Sorry—they’re not actually my friends,” Lance offers weakly. Keith furrows his eyebrows at that and Lance sighs, dropping his hand from his face. “Okay, fine—they’re my friends. But they are _awful_ friends.”

“I really don’t believe that,” Keith says, and tries to smile reassuringly. He’s practically drowning in Lance’s awkward pheromones.

“Well, you haven’t really hung out with them, so you wouldn’t know,” Lance murmurs and laughs nervously. Keith crosses his arms over his chest and looks down on the alpha’s chest as he speaks.

“Maybe I can,” Keith says and feels the heat rise on his cheeks.

“Can what now?” Lance asks and frowns.

“Hang out with you—you and your friends, I mean,” Keith says urgently and continues to avoid Lance’s eyes. “C’mon, we should get going,” Keith says before Lance manages to answer and starts walking. Lance takes a few seconds before he catches up to him.

“You want to hang out with us?” he asks and tries to catch Keith’s gaze, but Keith keeps staring stubbornly forwards.

“Sure. I mean, they seem nice.”

“Oh, uh…” the alpha stalls and Keith feels suddenly as if he’s purposely stepped out on thin ice and dares to feel surprised when the first crack appears beneath his feet.

“I don’t have to, obviously. I mean, you and I are hardly friends either so that would be weird—right?” Keith immediately backtracks and winces at every single word leaving his mouth. Lance stops suddenly again and Keith closes his eyes in embarrassment as he stops walking too.

“Hardly friends. _Right_.” Lance scratches the back of his head and slumps against the locker behind him. Keith kind of just stands there in front of him and has no idea how to save this situation. “Uhm, that’s—I wouldn’t really mind if you hung out with me…” Lance continued and Keith immediately whipped his head up. “Uh, and my _friends—_ me, _and_ my friends, that’s what I meant.” Lance chuckles nervously again and looks away from Keith briefly, pink ear tips and all.

“Cool,” Keith says and smiles. Lance slowly turns his eyes back on Keith and the air seems bit easier to breathe suddenly.

“Yeah. Cool. Uhm, so did you—did you really mean that we weren’t really friends? I mean, that’s—that’s totally cool if you think so, I just… I don’t know, I just kinda thought we were at least friends?” Lance started fidgeting with the books in his hands, folding and refolding the edges of a paper—probably some homework he would have to turn in to the teacher all torn up later. Keith doesn’t even think before he reaches forwards and gently pulls Lance’s fingers away from totally ruining the paper. Lance’s hand is warm, almost a little sweaty, but it feels like heaven to Keith. His whole body shivers at the touch.

“Are we really _friends_ , Lance?” he asks way too confident, currently completely content and reassured by his alpha’s skin against his. Keith looks up at the alpha, who has pressed himself flat against the locker, as if he needs these few inches between them to continue functioning.

“Uh,” Lance breathes, his eyes flickering up and down between Keith’s face and their connected hands. Keith tilts his head in wait for an answer, the content feelings and sudden adrenaline kick steadily decreasing. “What does—I don’t—I guess we’re—“ Lance stammers and grows redder by every word. The flustered pheromones cloud around them, and it’s just a clusterfuck of both their scents.

Keith drops Lance’s hand and tries to keep the casual grin on his face, but he’s suddenly very unsure about the whole situation.

“I’ll give you some time to think of an answer to that,” he says and takes a step away from the alpha. “See you in class, Lance.”

Keith gives Lance another look and takes in the way he stares at him, eyes wide, blush furious on his tanned skin, his hand still hovering in the place between them, and then he walks away.

 

-

 

Keith has never been in love before. If you asked, he wouldn’t have been able to tell you the first thing about love, at least not the romantic kind. For the past few weeks, Keith has certainly started to understand what everyone has been talking about, you know, the corny stuff about love. The butterflies, the fuzzy, soft feelings. The jelly legs and the uncontrollable smiling. Keith feels it all, but he still can’t tell you if he’s in love. It’s not until this day, when Keith sat in the classroom and gazed absentmindedly at Lance, admiring his features; the soft, brown curls framing his forehead, the steep slope of his nose, the tiny freckles that can’t even be seen from across the classroom like this, but Keith imagines them anyway, knows them like the back of his own hand, it’s not until this very day, this very second, that Keith realizes he’s in love.

Keith has never been good at knowing what he’s got until it’s taken away from him.

There’s a girl next to Lance. Keith can’t really say he’s noticed her before, honestly he doesn’t even recall her name even though they’ve shared the same physics class for these past months. But he sees her now, because suddenly Lance’s eyes gets pulled away from Keith and they land on this girl. Keith sits on the edge of his chair as it happens. It’s like he’s witnessing a horrific car crash, a train wreck, a god damn tsunami. He can’t for the life of him look away from the scene in front of him. And then it gets even _worse_.

Lance glances back at Keith, briefly, and then immediately looks back at the girl again. The girl leaves her gaze on Keith an extra second, but Keith doesn’t even find the care to return the look. Lance is blushing. He’s honest to god _blushing_ at whatever this girl is saying. She is too close. Can’t she smell Keith on him? Can’t she see that Lance is not up for grabs? He wishes he was closer so he could hear what they were talking about, so much that he unconsciously starts leaning forwards, almost tipping his chair.

“Whoa,” Adam says and grabs him before he really embarrass himself. Keith hardly acknowledges him, only keeps staring at Lance, at the two of them leaning closer to each other, whispering so the teacher won’t hear them—and Keith feels about ready to march over there and end whatever has her twinning her hair between her fingers. “ _Keith_.”

Keith turns sharply towards Adam at the tone of his voice, border lining on an alpha command. He gasps lightly, looks around to see if anyone else noticed, but it’s only him and Adam. To his defense, Adam looks back at him a bit sheepish. Shoulders hunched up as if he’s sure Keith’s going to yell at him in the middle of the classroom. He probably would have, normally. But right now he feels as if he’s got bigger issues than Adam being an alpha jerk.

Keith starts to hover in his chair—and gets gently shoved down again by Adam.

“Keith, seriously—it’s not worth it, not now,” Adam says, and he actually sounds like the old him right now, as if he actually cares. And Keith knows he’s right, so he turns back to face the teacher and absolutely refuses to even glance back at Lance for the duration of the class. He ignores Adam as well, just because he can. He actually focuses on writing notes, on taking in the things the teacher says. The big test is coming up just in a week and he really can’t fail.

When class ends Keith’s been writing several pages of notes and feels kind of proud of himself, but then he remembers Lance… and the girl that’s still clinging onto him. Keith waits until they leave before even starting to pack his things. Adam stays by the table for once.

“Hey, uh, are you okay?” Adam asks and nudges Keith’s shoulder when the room is empty enough for no one to hear. Keith briefly looks at the alpha, and then down again to pick up his notebook.

“Why do you care?” he asks, and Keith knows it’s petty. He just doesn’t care anymore.

“You know I always care,” Adam sighs, and his voice is low and scratchy and it catches Keith’s attention, and then he notices that the alpha looks at him with a tiredness to his features that Keith hasn’t noticed before. Keith gets up from the table and stands right in front of Adam, reaches up and touches the very tip of his fingers to the alpha’s dark circles right beneath his eye. Adam inhales sharply and widens his eyes. Keith frowns.

“Are _you_ okay?” Keith asks instead of answering, and Adam knows he’s not just asking about today. Adam’s scent is constantly in a state of distress, at least around Keith. Even Eliza has noticed, and it’s really been tearing on Keith—but obviously not as much as it’s been tearing on Adam. He’s actually feeling bad now for giving Adam such a hard time. Keith has no idea what he’s going through.

Adam closes his eyes and sighs again, just a soft, slow exhale through his nostrils. Suddenly the alpha’s scent changes to something touching on content, and Keith feels hopeful.

“I’m sorry,” Adam says and opens his eyes again. Keith keeps his hand, the entire palm now, pressed to Adam’s cheek if only because it seems to calm the alpha down. “You don’t have to worry about me, okay? I’m fine, I—I’ll be fine.”

“You’re not mad at me anymore?” Keith asks quietly. Hopes and hopes that this weird fight is over now. Adam smiles sadly, forlorn almost.

“Nah. I can’t stay mad at you,” he says. Then he reaches up and closes his fingers around Keith’s wrist and presses his hand closer to his cheek. “I’m more concerned about you, though.”

Keith kind of just stares at him. He doesn’t want to ruin this moment with his feelings. He doesn’t want to be selfish anymore.

“You don’t have to be,” Keith whispers. The grip of Keith’s wrist disappears and suddenly Adam brushes his thumb gently across the corner of Keith’s mouth, right where it dips to a frown.

“You know I’ll always be,” Adam murmurs back, and Keith doesn’t know what’s going on anymore. Keith just follows his instincts and dives in to lean his head on Adam’s shoulder and enjoys the feeling of his arms hugging him closely. Enjoys the feeling of not fighting anymore.

He doesn’t understand Adam, probably never will because the alpha refuses to tell him what’s wrong, but at least he can be there for him, right? Keith can do this. He can be the greatest fucking friend Adam’s ever had, just like Adam is one of Keith’s greatest friends. Just like they’ve always have been. It’s time to get that back.

So Keith finally pulls away from Adam’s face and clears his throat.

“Also, if you ever try to alpha command me again I’ll fucking drop kick you, okay?” he says, waits long enough to see the alpha gulp and nod, and then pushes past him to march out of the classroom.

 

-

 

Keith wishes the good feeling of reconciling with Adam was enough to suppress everything else, but it’s jack shit compared to the feeling he gets when he catches Lance and _Jessica_ hold hands in class later that week. Lance doesn’t even seem to get it. He caught Keith staring and just smiled at him, as if it wasn’t making Keith’s whole chest ache seeing him linking his fingers with hers like that. Then he sees them kiss briefly in the cafeteria and he can actually feel his heart lurching in the cage of his ribs. Keith wonders why it feels so different now compared to Sebastian—and he honestly doesn’t really know. Maybe it’s because Keith really thought he was an option now. He really thought he was someone Lance could totally go for. _Would_ go for. Keith didn’t realize it at the time, but now he knows he’d kind of started to think that Lance had picked him. Even if only subconsciously. Sebastian was a setback, but _Jessica_ —she was a fucking punch to the throat. A berating. A punishment for even daring to hope.

And he can’t seem to fucking escape her.

Wherever he goes, Keith manages to knock into them, catch them being cute and couple-y. He’s even started taking the long way to his dorm, behind the cafeteria and through a backdoor so he won’t knock into them in the corridors. Except he can’t escape them even there. Keith has managed to sneak outside, walked around the cafeteria building and was just about to turn for the door leading back in when he stops right mid step, completely freezes at the image of Lance pressing Jessica to the wall. Keith doesn’t let himself stay long enough to really capture the way Lance kisses her, he just instantly turn around and bolts for another backdoor, whatever door there is and escapes the scene outside. Keith runs until his lungs feels like they’re on fire and then he runs even more because the pain kind of makes it easier to forget. Eventually he slows down, and he realizes he’s somewhere he probably shouldn’t be. This is not a corridor for students at all.

Keith walks by fancy doors with name plates, and expensive looking memorabilia in glass cages, and he knows he’ll be in deep shit if anyone notices him here. This is definitely the military part of the Galaxy Garrison institution. (But he can’t really blame himself—they shouldn’t leave backdoors unlocked if they don’t want students popping in).

Keith decides that getting caught by a teacher or some other official person in these corridors is better that walking back out and face Lance, so he keeps going. He tries to navigate himself, tries to figure out where the fuck he should go to get back to the dorms—and then he hears a voice that he would recognize anywhere. It’s Shiro, but it’s still too muffled for Keith to really hear what he’s saying, but he would bet his knife on it being him. Keith hurries through the corridors, probably a bit too reckless, too curious for his own best. But he only needed to take one turn before he sees the half open door where the voices come from. He sneaks closer to see the name on the plate, engraved to the dark wood of the door. Squinting, he finally manages to read _Admiral Sanda_ and immediately grounds to a halt just by seeing that name. Fuck—if he gets caught out here he’s going to get fucking expelled from the Garrison so fast he won’t even get to pack his bags. A loud voice from the room interrupted his anxious thoughts and got him pressing himself to the wall.

“No, absolutely not,” Keith heard a female voice say, and he could only assume it’s Admiral Sanda herself.

“Why not?” another male voice interrupts. He sounds agitated, as if this discussion had been going on for too long. “He’s cleared all his physicals—“

“I don’t care what the doctors says. This man is sick, and he shouldn’t be sent on another mission—especially as far away as Kerberos.”

Keith couldn’t help a gasp escaping his lips at the mention of Kerberos.

“I have to report this to flight command,” Admiral Sanda continues.

“Shiro is the best pilot in the Garrison _by_ _far_ —he’s saved me in deep space more times than I can count! If he doesn’t go on this mission, neither do I.”

Keith presses a fist to his mouth so he won’t accidentally make a noise. He doesn’t understand what they’re saying. Why is Admiral Sanda saying that Shiro is too sick to go on the Kerberos mission? Is he going to go on the mission anyway?

Wait. Keith frowns, staring down at the ground. That would mean Shiro’s going away for… years?

Suddenly, Keith doesn’t find the rest of the conversation as intriguing as he first did. He hardly cares about anyone hearing him as he scrambles to run back the same way he came. Keith exits the backdoor without even thinking about Lance and Jessica, but he doesn’t even care about looking for them, he just keeps running until he gets back to the familiar side of the Garrison. He doesn’t stop until he reaches his dorm. He closes the door and leans his forehead on the cool surface, tries to find a pace of breathing that doesn’t leave him feeling as if he’s going to pass out.

All his thoughts shoot through his head like arrows, and it keeps him reeling even when he’s managed to get his breathing in control. But there’s three major things Keith keeps circling back too.

One. Shiro has some kind of sickness.

Two. If the sickness is serious, he won’t get to go on the Kerberos mission, but that would mean his sickness is serious enough to be scary, and Keith doesn’t want to think it is.

And three. Shiro is sick, but it’s not a serious kind of sick, not a scary kind of sick, the kind of sick Keith is hoping for. But this kind of sickness would also mean that Shiro is going on a mission to a moon that would keep him away for years.

And that is almost equally as scary.

 

-

 

Physics class is almost painful. This is the last time they’ll get to go through everything for the huge exam tomorrow—Keith can’t concentrate on anything the teacher is saying. He can’t even concentrate on Lance. All he can think about is Shiro being ripped away from him by either a vicious disease or the incomprehensible vastness of time and space. Keith doesn’t think he would be able to handle life without Shiro there. He’s grown to be like some kind of father figure to him. A brother. _Family_. Keith can’t let the only family he has left slip through his fingers. He needs to find Shiro. He needs to talk him out of going on that mission.

When class is over Keith rushes to get out. He hears Adam shout for him, can fucking sense Lance’s eyes burning the skin of his neck as he goes, but he doesn’t stop. Keith goes back to his dorm and drops off all his books and stuff, and then he’s back out again. He starts with looking in the flight training room, hoping that Shiro’s straying behind after his last class of the day, but Keith finds the room empty. He bangs his fist into the wall and hurries to the next location: the teachers lounge. It takes some time for Keith to get there through the rush of students trying to get to the cafeteria for early dinner, but he manages to push through the crowd. When Keith finally arrives he doesn’t even manage to stop and nock on the door before it opens and he crashes into someone’s chest.

“Oof,” Keith grunts and takes a step back.

“Keith?” the person he ran right into says incredulously and Keith opens his eyes only to be faced with Adam, the junior/senior physics teacher—Shiro’s boyfriend. Keith brightens up.

“Have you seen Shiro?” he asks immediately, briefly thinks he probably should show more respect to a teacher (especially one he just almost knocked to the ground) but he doesn’t have the time. Surprisingly, Adam’s kind smile falters at Keith’s question. Even his scent turns a bit sour. Keith wrinkles his nose.

“He’s not in here, Keith,” he sighs. “You know, I could probably help you as well if you’re having trouble with your flying technique. I’m pretty good at flying myself.”

Keith frowns at that. It’s not that Keith doesn’t like Adam, he just never really got the impression that Adam cared much for Keith. He’s always felt like he’s just an annoying kid that Adam only tolerates because Shiro’s kind of adopted him. Keith’s never had Adam in physics, so it’s not like they ever really meet besides through Shiro. So even though Adam’s offer seems nice enough, Keith can’t help but fumble a bit with an answer.

“No, I—uh, it’s not about flying, or school at all,” Keith mumbles. “I need to talk to him about Kerberos.”

Adam’s eyebrows fly up over the rim of his glasses when Keith mentions Kerberos, but only for a split of a second, and then he’s back to his kind, collected self again.

“Oh?” he says, and Keith realizes he’s just as bad of a liar as Shiro is. Ugh. They really do fit together. “How do you know about the Kerberos mission?”

Keith freezes. Fuck.

“Uh,” he stalls and backs another step away from Adam, who fully steps out and away from the teachers lounge. “I—I heard it from someone and—and—“

“You know what, Keith—I don’t want to hear how you found out. That’s above my pay grade,” Adam sighed again and pinched the bridge of his nose, pushing up his glasses in the process. “I think Takashi might be in the workshop—go see if you find him there,” Adam continued and smiled again. But Keith could smell the diffused distress pheromones coming from the teacher.

“Thank you,” he said instead of pointing it out. “Uhm, and sorry for running into you.”

Adam chuckled at that and ruffled Keith’s hair. “That’s alright. Just don’t get into anymore trouble, okay? And if you do, you never talked to me.” And with that Adam salutes Keith and walks by him and down the corridor. Keith stands still for a moment, if only to process the altercation with the teacher, and then he decides it’s a riddle for another day and starts running towards the workshop. Honestly, he’s kind of disappointed in himself for not thinking of that first, but he guesses he shouldn’t be surprised that Adam is the one who knew where Shiro would be. He was right. As soon as Keith steps onto the workshop platform he spots Shiro working on his hovercraft in the scolding sun. He slows down and shoves his hands into his pockets before he starts walking across the graveled asphalt to get to his brother.

“When were you going to tell me?” Keith shouts when he’s only a few steps away from Shiro. Shiro turns his head and stares at Keith, a sigh escaping his lips before he straightens up and greets him.

“Oh. Hey, Keith,” he says and smiles that usual casual smile of his that’s always there when Keith’s around. Suddenly Keith feels furious about that smile. Furious at Shiro for keeping secrets form him.

“So what is it? Are you sick or something?” he spits out and stops in front of the hovercraft, glaring up at Shiro through his bangs. Shiro opens his mouth but nothing comes out. He shakes his head and jumps down the few steps to the ground walks up to Keith.

“I’m not sure I follow—“ he begins, but Keith cuts him off.

“I was outside the office,” Keith snaps. “I overheard you talking with Admiral Sanda.” Keith can’t believe Shiro was ready to stand there and lie to Keith’s face. He doesn’t understand why Shiro is doing this, if it’s because he feels some kind of misplaced protection of Keith, he really isn’t in the mood to hear it. “Tell me the truth. Tell me what’s wrong—I’m not a little kid. I can handle it,” Keith says, and tries to reel in his emotions from his scent to really prove to Shiro that he’s mature enough to handle this, whatever this is.

Shiro looks at him with something close to pity, or dejection. Keith can’t tell. Shiro’s has always been good at hiding his scent. Then Shiro sighs and closes his eyes.

“I have a disease,” he says finally, and Keith feels a coldness run through his entire body. “And it’s getting worse. I’ll only be able to maintain my peak condition for a couple more years. And after that…” Keith can’t help the distressing pheromones leaking through. Shiro turns his face away. “The Garrison doesn’t want me up there. Neither does Adam.”

Adam? Keith thinks back to the distress Adam tried to hide form Keith after mentioning Shiro and the Kerberos mission. Thinks back to how easily he let Keith slip through. Suddenly, Keith can’t grasp the anger anymore, it’s turned to fine sand pouring through his fists. The only thing he feels is numbness.

“So, what are you going to do?” He hears himself asking Shiro. He doesn’t answer, doesn’t even look at Keith. “ _Shiro_.” Keith doesn’t mean to mewl, but the sound just slipped out in his distress of a family member leaving him again. Shiro turns sharply towards him at the sound, purely instinct, but also because he cares. Keith knows he cares.

“I’m going on the mission, Keith,” Shiro admits finally.

Keith doesn’t feel surprised by the answer. He already knew. So all he can do is nod, and not suffocate Shiro with the scent of abandonment.

“Keith,” Shiro says again, and this time he turns towards Keith completely and reaches for him. Keith doesn’t move. He doesn’t think he can. Shiro’s arms pulls him in until he’s pressed to his chest, surrounded by the familial scent of his brother. A scent that’s become an integral part of his everyday life. A scent he won’t get to have for a long time. “It’s alright. It’s all going to be alright,” Shiro mumbles into Keith’s hair, but Keith only shakes his head.

“You’re going to be away for so long, and—and you’re going to forget me.” Keith’s voice hitches in the middle of the sentence, revealing the way he desperately tries to suffocate his sobs.

“I won’t, Keith,” Shiro says fiercly, as if that’s the stupidest thing he’s ever heard. “I would never forget you. You’re my little brother. I love you so much.”

Keith wails at that. Because he’s going to lose his brother for a really long time, and the Kerberos mission is really soon and Keith has so much shit going on in his life right now and he just really doesn’t want Shiro to go. But he also doesn’t want to be selfish. Shiro is sick. He wants to go on this last mission before it’s too late. This is bigger than Keith’s stupid alpha problems.

“Oh, Keith,” Shiro croons. He can probably smell the confused distress oozing of off Keith like from a perfume bottle. “It’s going to be fine. _You’re_ going to be fine. You are so strong, I know you can do this. And even if you don’t, you won’t be alone—you hear me? Adam will always be here, you can go to him with everything you want to talk to me about, and Ms. Arreola will also still be here to help you. It’s going to be fine—and before you know it, I’ll be back.”

Keith nods even though he doesn’t really believe a word Shiro says, but he nods anyway. He nods because he wants to think that Shiro is telling the truth, that he just knows this because he’s Keith’s older brother and this is just typical older brother knowledge. Keith has doubts, but he won’t let them ruin this moment.

So Shiro reassures. And Keith nods.

And that will have to be enough for now.


	7. Coming Down

A world without Shiro there to guide him didn’t sound appealing at all to Keith. Shiro had assured him that this wasn’t even a concept to consider, but the intrusive thought wouldn’t leave his mind even as Shiro told him to get back to the cafeteria for dinner. Keith had walked away from his brother in sluggish steps, for the first time in a long time not really sure of the direction he was going. He ended up on the roof, unsurprisingly. He dangled a foot over the edge and stared up at the orange sky, trying to grasp onto the fact that Shiro would soon be even beyond everything he could see with his bare eyes, beyond everything Keith’s ever known. Far, _far_ out of his reach.

A shiver prickled down his spine from a particularly cold gust of wind and effectively broke him out of the objectively depressing train of thought he was indulging in. Being selfish wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, according to Keith, but this was not the right moment to only think of himself. Shiro needs this. He shouldn’t have to worry about leaving some scrawny teenager behind while he fulfills his dreams, and Keith refused to become a liability like that.

 _This is fine_ , he thought, determined as he got up from the roof to get inside. He should probably eat something.

_It’s all fine._

Keith will manage. There’s still school, and Ms. Arreola, and he has his friends—if Adam doesn’t flip out again like last time. It’s going to be okay, just like Shiro promised. He’ll be back on Earth in no time.

Too busy reassuring himself of these things, Keith didn’t notice the agitated voice echoing through the empty hallways until he turned one last corner and came face to face with the one alpha he hoped to avoid. Lance kicks the door to their physics classroom and swears loudly, the sour pheromones oozing from the alpha causing Keith to freeze in the middle of his step.

“Uh,” Keith starts weakly, because even if his brain was ready to order his body to just turn around and walk straight back the way he came, another _bigger_ part of him absolutely preened at the idea of Lance paying even the slightest bit attention to him. It pissed him off greatly, but not as much as Lance's wide blue eyes on him made him succumb to the temptation. “Do you need help?” he finally let out. Lance only stared at him, mouth half ajar, fingers stubbornly holding onto the doorknob.

“Where did you come from?” the alpha asks suddenly, eyes slowly going over the omega. Keith had a hard time believing Lance did it consciously, but that didn’t stop the blush from spreading across his whole face, and probably made the tips of his ears red as well. He was sure Lance could smell his embarrassment but kept his face neutral, just because he didn’t want the alpha to get the satisfaction of seeing him flustered. He definitely didn’t want Lance to know he’d just been up wallowing in self-pity on the roof.

“Teachers’ lounge,” he answered instead, and it wasn’t even technically a lie. He _had_ been there earlier, knocking into Adam. Lance furrowed his eyebrows slightly, and Keith was not having any of that so he started moving. The alpha stood frozen by the door even as Keith took two hair needles out of his hair and walked towards him, quickly sinking down to his knees by the door—absolutely _refusing_ to think about what this new position would look like to Lance—and started fiddling with the lock. Fortunately, he managed to unlock the door in under half a minute, surprising even Keith himself, although Lance’s gasp in the background definitely did its job to boost the omega’s confidence.

Keith preens, but refrains from looking up at the alpha—not that it mattered anyway. Lance marches past him and inside the classroom right as he gets up from the ground. He didn’t even bother to say thank you.

Keith deflates, the vague scent of annoyed alpha lingers in the air in the hallway, and he has no idea what he’d done wrong this time. Has no idea what he did wrong even from the start. Obviously it must be something Keith did—something he did or something he is that repels the alpha. Something about him that is wrong or—or _broken_ or something. Keith doesn’t understand why, but he can clearly see that Lance has just been playing with him this entire time; pretended to be interested, to flirt with him, to joke around. Keith just doesn’t understand _why_. He really thought Lance was a great guy, a nice alpha. It doesn’t make any sense.

Keith still remains by the door as Lance reemerges with a notebook in hand from the classroom. The alpha shuffles around, flips through the notes, and completely ignores Keith’s presence. Keith glares at him, wills him to talk to him, to acknowledge the hurt he’s causing him.

And suddenly, as if Lance heard his thoughts, the alpha opens his mouth.

“I didn’t know you where into older alphas,” he says casually, flipping through his stupid notebook. If Keith had been moving, the sentence surely would have caused him to freeze mid-step in its randomness. The words seem alien, as if Lance suddenly spoke another language. Keith doesn’t even understand how this topic came up for discussion.

“ _What_ ,” Keith hisses, causing Lance to glance up at him. The ignorant tilt to his eyebrows only angers Keith even more.

“Wow,” Lance says, shutting his notebook, “playing dumb really doesn’t suit you.”

Keith drops his chin, staring at the alpha in disbelief. There’s something about the way Lance looks right now that inherently collides with the image Keith’s had of him for all these years. This asshole isn’t the Lance he got to know.It has to be something else at play here. Something else that bothers Lance—that _causes_ him to act like this.

Keith shuts his mouth and grinds his teeth together to swallow back all the things he’d love to say right now, in order to say something more coherent.

“What the fuck are you even talking about,” he manages to grit out, taking a step closer to Lance, hoping he’ll see a flicker of something he recognizes in his face. Lance’s face remains blank and unreadable, his scent only changing slightly from annoyed to annoyed and possessive—which Keith doesn’t understand at _all_.

“I mean, good for you… or something,” he says and waves his hand nonchalantly in Keith’s direction. “I bet you’ll get good grades.”

Keith freezes. _Good grades?_

“You mean _Shiro?_ ” Keith sputters out, absolutely bewildered with Lance’s suddenly clear accusation. Shiro? Takashi Shirogane? Their teacher? His _brother_? The guy who took him under this wing and practically raised him the last few years? _That_ Shiro? “It’s not like that, Lance!” Keith continues as if the clear disbelief in his face wasn’t enough to clear this up. Lance must be joking? Right? He can’t actually, _seriously_ believe Keith feels anything but familial love for Shiro.

Lance doesn’t bother to answer with anything but a doubting look.

Keith is reeling. This alpha is actually going to drive him crazy. Keith is sure he’s about to do something very stupid to prove it’s not Shiro that is the alpha who holds all of Keith’s affection, when he suddenly scents the reeking jealousy clouding around Lance. Again, the bewilderment hits Keith in a deluge, flooding his brain with hope and disbelief and confusion, and the sudden clarity that he has no idea what the fuck is going on in Lance’s head.

Mostly he feels the hurt, the hooks in his heart tied to a rope, tethering him to Lance who shoves and pulls, yanks him back and forth in a violent motion, until it shreds to pieces in his chest. Until he’s got no heart left to tie him to anything.

“Why do you even care?” Keith says, breathlessly, as if all the fight has poured out of him. “Like you’re not walking around smelling like _Jessica_ all the fucking time.”

A flicker of the old Lance peeps through his armor, and Keith almost flinches at the hurt in his face.

“That’s not even close to what this is about!” Lance shrieks, and it’s the most emotion he’s gotten out of him for this whole conversation—but Keith has no idea what the fuck he’s saying.

“What? How the fuck is that not the same thing?” he says and shakes his head as if it would clear up the whirling in his mind.

Lance seems to square up, takes a step closer and opens his mouth.

“I don’t go around smelling like a _teacher_ , Keith,” he says, each word landing like a punch. “That’s the fucking difference.”

Keith is at total loss here. Has no words matching up to the astronomical amount of disbelief he’s fueled on by right now. So Lance is angry, and jealous and possessive, all because ehe worries about Keith wearing a teacher’s scent? What the fuck is his motive here? Protect Keith? Get Keith all to himself? But what about Jessica? Keith can’t wrap his mind around it.

Lance crosses his arms and stares the omega down.

“What, were you trying to sneak back to your dorm after getting snuggly with Mr. Shirogane?” he taunts—and Keith can’t help his mind flashing back to the hug, to the tears sinking into Shiro’s shirt, to the hurt and the separation anxiety and the guilt. “Oh my god,” Lance exclaims, as if he’s seen something in Keith’s face that just confirmed what he only guessed. “You totally _were_!”

Suddenly, Keith feels as if he’s not only defending himself, but Shiro as well. And that seemed infinitely more important.

“It’s not like that! I said that already!” Keith shouts, the frustration almost bringing him to tears. What if this gets out? What if a rumor of an alpha teacher and an omega student gets out and ruins Shiro’s last chance at going to space? Keith looks at Lance as if he’s ready to plead, to beg on his bare knees, and Lance does not look convinced. It’s a sucker punch to his guts, that Lance of all people would think of him that way. Lance, the alpha who has been the sole focus of Keith’s omega since forever. The only one Keith has ever paid attention to, actually bothered with. How is he so _blind_? “You’re so dense, Lance. You don’t get _anything_. Why don’t you get anything?” Keith says, dangerously close to the brink of tears and starts pacing around the corridor to pull himself together.

“Hey!” Lance squawks. “I’m not _dense_.”

Keith reels around to face him.

“But you are!” he shouts, gesturing towards the offended alpha— _exhibit A_. “It’s like you don’t even notice—I’ve tried _everything_ and you just—you just… _Ugh_! I can’t even _believe_ you right now!” Keith stomps his foot on the ground in pure pent up frustration, and he doesn’t even care anymore if he looks like a bratty omega not getting his way. Lance is being a real stupid ass alpha, so he thinks his behavior is pretty justified. Keith is just about to start pacing around again, trying to disperse the anxiety and utter distress from clouding around him, when Lance’s pheromones change. The scent alone is enough to corrode his nose—the anger almost tangible.

“Oh, _you_ can’t believe _me_? Okay, I see.” The words are sharp and cold. Completely void of the simmering anger Keith is absolutely trampled on by in the narrow hallway. “Well I can’t believe you’ve kept my hoodie all this time and walked around smelling like me everywhere, what’s up with that, Keith? Why are you messing around like that?” he demands, a whip to Keith’s back. A ruler to his fingers. A berating for even daring to believe he’s ever had a shot at the alpha—to think he had a chance. Lance takes a step closer, Keith instinctively backing away from the intimidating alpha. “What? You thought I would come running or something?” Keith stops in his track, winces and shrinks into himself, tries to take up as little space as possible. Lance _scoffs_ at his reaction. “Oh, you did? Didn’t you? I bet that must have been a waste of time then. I don’t give a fuck about what you do with my hoodie, Keith, you can keep it. I just don’t understand why you have to rub it in my face when you just could have fucking asked Mr. Shirogane to rub his icky hands all over you. But no, you had to have _my_ scent, is that right?” Keith wonders if it’s possible to sink through the floor right now, to just fucking evaporate into thin air. This right here, Lance putting him against a wall, confronting him and taunting him with all the things he’s ever wanted, is Keith’s personal hell. A nightmare coming true. Lance towers over him from where he stands. “Well, I’m right here Keith, like _damn_ , if you want to smell like me so badly, why didn’t you just fucking come to me?”

“I don’t—“ _I don’t want to smell like you_ , Keith was about to say but figures it’s too late for lying his way out of this now. “I didn’t—“ and then he just doesn’t get anything out. His throat is clenching around his airways, blocking the words from getting out. His whole body trembling.

“You didn’t _what_ , Keith?” Lance taunts and takes one last step closer, and Keith can’t handle the way he looks at him, as if he’s the dirt under his shoe—so he hides his face in his hands, and whimpers, the pheromones he’s so desperately crammed inside of him finally breaks through his walls and seeps out into open air. Keith feels the way Lance freezes, instinctively takes a step back from the scared omega.

“Uh, Keith?” Lance says. Quietly this time. Gently. Keith hates it so much how much he loves that tone from Lance. How easily his voice soothes him and can rile him up again. “Buddy?” He continues when Keith makes no effort to respond. “I’m not… mad—fuck, Keith, I’m sorry I didn’t mean—“

Hyper aware, Keith feels before he sees Lance taking a step closer, a hand raised as if he’s about to touch the omega—and then his hand is one Keith’s shoulder, heavier than anything he’s ever carried before.

“I have to go,” Keith says, fleetingly, shrugs the hand off him and doesn’t even spare a single glance in Lance’s way. Keith has enough self-preservation left to deny himself the urge to look at the alpha. To torture himself with the image of the pity in his eyes.

 _It’s not worth it_ , he tries to tell himself.

_It’s not worth it, Keith._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, Emu and DreamerX2, thanks for the motivation
> 
> I have nothing else to say for myself


End file.
